Call for curator
The Contemporary Native Art Biennale / Biennale d’art contemporain autochtone
Request for Proposals: Indigenous Curatorial Project for the 6th edition of the Biennale
Project Start Date: Fall 2021
Contract Timeline: 10 months
Curatorial fee: $18,000
The Contemporary Native Art Biennial (BACA) is seeking submissions from indigenous curators for the sixth edition of the BACA biennial, taking place in the Spring / Summer of 2022. The Biennial will be presented at multiple venues throughout Tiohtià:ke / Mooniyang / Montréal and within the Quebec region, including gallery Art Mûr, La Guilde, McCord Museum, Stewart Hall Art Gallery, and the Musée des beaux-arts de Sherbrooke.
The selected curator will receive a $18,000 honorarium for a ten-month contract which covers all included tasks associated with the curatorial costs and copyrights. The BACA Curator is responsible for developing their curatorial proposal for the biennial and provide a statement for the exhibition catalogue.
BACA will provide auxiliary resources for the Biennial: artist contracts and payments, shipping, designing, and printing exhibition catalogue. Proposals are evaluated on merit of project, singularity of concept, and adherence to the application guidelines. All applications submitted will be considered final and treated as such.
The Contemporary Native Art Biennial, is a long-term project to recognize and support contemporary Indigenous art and artists. This recurring event, central to Montreal’s artistic scene, highlights a plurality of artistic practices that stem from Indigenous cultures across North America. The project was initiated by gallery Art Mûr in 2012, Given its success over the first 5 editions, a non-profit organization BACA (Biennale d’art contemporain autochtone) has been set up to better respond to the increasing scale and popularity of the Native Art Biennial. This project purpose is to promote contemporary Indigenous art utilizing Tiohtià:ke / Mooniyang / Montréal as the central gathering place, in this way re-visiting the territory’s ancestral role for Indigenous peoples.
CRITERIA
To be eligible for consideration, candidates must have curated a minimum of two exhibitions and have published a minimum of two critical essays on contemporary art, be of Indigenous heritage (First Nations, Métis or Inuit), from any region in Canada/North America.
In addition, candidates must demonstrate they have the determination and talent to contribute in meaningful ways to the development of Indigenous contemporary art in Canada. Foremost, the candidate must be able to work independently and as part of a team and have proven superior written and oral communication skills in either English or French.
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
The BACA strongly encourages proposals that are conceptually innovative, that introduce new artists to the BACA audience and that deliver theoretical tools to think about contemporary Indigenous art in Canada.
Proposals must include:
1. A curatorial statement (up to 1500 words) including the description of the project and strategic justification for proposed actions.
2. A list of 15 or more proposed Indigenous artists.
3. A work schedule.
4. Curriculum vitae detailing education, research and professional experience, and any other relevant information.
5. A representative selection of completed projects that convey an impression of the candidate’s distinctive approach presented as images, text, video or links to websites.
Note: Curators may not include their own work in the exhibition.
For more information, application resources and to submit the application materials, please contact the BACA project coordinator by email to: admin (at) baca.ca
