ICI and CCA Derry~Londonderry announce Curatorial Intensive in Northern Ireland

Independent Curators International and Centre for Contemporary Art Derry~Londonderry announce the Curatorial Intensive in Northern IrelandMay 19–25, 2013 Application deadline: March 4, 2013 www.curatorsintl.orgwww.cca-derry-londonderry.orgFacebook / Twitter

Developed by Independent Curators International (ICI) in collaboration with Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA) Derry~Londonderry, the Curatorial Intensive "From 'Official History' to Underrepresented Narratives" will examine the role of cultural production in addressing geopolitical landscapes and recent histories. The week-long program will take the concepts of narrative and memory as the theoretical and poetic underpinning to reflect upon recent social developments in specific geographies, while questioning the ability of art and exhibition-making to act as catalyst for change.

Through an international roster of speakers, "From 'Official History' to Underrepresented Narratives" will consider the tension between remembrance and forgetting, and the role of art and cultural institutions in creating a discourse of national identity and giving visibility to overlooked histories. Seminars, site visits, individual meetings, and roundtable discussions will be led by the following faculty: Miguel Amado (Curator, the Portuguese Pavilion at the 2013 Venice Biennale), Mai Abu ElDahab (independent curator), Annie Fletcher (Curator of Exhibitions at the Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, and tutor at De Appel, Amsterdam), Khwezi Gule (Chief Curator, Soweto Museums), Peter Jenkinson (independent cultural broker and Co-Director, Culture+Conflict), and Paul Ramírez Jonas (artist and Assistant Professor, Hunter College, New York), among others.

Application guidelinesVisit ICI's website to apply for the Curatorial Intensive online. All applications must include a 300-word description of a program idea that the applicant would like help in developing. This description should outline the proposal concept and any artists that the applicant is considering. Also required are a current 250-word bio, a 500-word letter of intent, and a 300-word text that describes a recent curatorial project that has made an impact on the applicant.

Fees and scholarshipsThe program fee is 1,900 USD. Participants are also responsible for covering travel and accommodation expenses. Scholarship packages that subsidize or eliminate the program fees, accommodation, and travel expenses are available and awarded based on merit. Scholarships for Northern Irish participants will be supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. Turkish nationals can apply for scholarships provided by SAHA.

For more information, visit ICI's website or contact Public Programs & Research Coordinator, Misa Jeffereis, at misa@curatorsintl.org.

About the Curatorial IntensiveThe Curatorial Intensive is ICI's short-term, low-cost training program that offers 12–14 curators the chance to develop project ideas and make connections with professionals in the field. It also provides the invaluable opportunity for peer-group education, forging new networks internationally. The Curatorial Intensive takes place twice annually in New York, and in other locations in conjunction with institutional partners worldwide. To date there have been 11 Curatorial Intensives including one in Brazil and China, and two each in Mumbai and Philadelphia. Since 2010, ICI has received 768 applications from curators in 63 countries. In two years 165 curators have participated in the programs from 39 countries and 19 U.S. states.

The Curatorial Intensive is made possible in part by grants from the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, the Dedalus Foundation, the Hartfield Foundation, the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, and the Milton and Sally Avery Arts Foundation, and by generous contributions from Toby Devan Lewis, the ICI Board of Trustees, and the supporters of ICI's Access Fund.  Additional support for the Curatorial Intensive: From “Official History” to Underrepresented Narratives is generously supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland/The Lottery Fund and UK City of Culture 2013.

About Independent Curators InternationalIndependent Curators International (ICI) connects emerging and established curators, artists, and institutions to forge international networks and generate new forms of collaboration through the production of exhibitions, events, publications, and curatorial training. Headquartered in New York, the organization provides public access to the people and practices that are key to current developments in curating and exhibition-making around the world, inspiring fresh ways of seeing and contextualizing contemporary art. Since it was established in 1975, ICI has worked with over 1,000 curators and 3,700 artists from 47 countries worldwide.

About Centre for Contemporary Art Derry~Londonderry Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA) Derry~Londonderry fosters a wide range of artistic, curatorial, and critical practices through five collaborative and process-driven streams: research and production, exhibition-making, public programs, publishing, and residencies. Embedded in the Cathedral Quarter within the historic city walls, CCA connects the region with itself and the rest of the world.