Curatorial Forum | EXPO CHICAGO September 12–15, 2017 Graham Foundation 4 West Burton Place Chicago, IL 60610 Developed in partnership with EXPO CHICAGO, the second Curatorial Forum will bring to Chicago 30 mid-career and established curators from across the country, working independently or with an institutional affiliation. The program was conceived to foster strong national and regional networks for curatorial and institutional collaboration, encourage critical thinking, and reflect on practices that are responsive to local art communities while inscribed in a global art discourse. The Curatorial Forum offers curators the opportunity to engage with their colleagues, gain exclusive insights into the fair’s curated elements, and explore among peers significant issues relevant to curating, programming, institution-building and audience engagement. This year, the Curatorial Forum will feature a series of peer-led, closed-door sessions focused on critical questions. Keynote Speaker: Jesús Carrillo | Independent Curator Session leaders include: Valerie Cassel Oliver | Race & Representation | Sydney and Frances Lewis Family Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Larissa Harris | Contemporary Art Literacy | Curator, Queens Museum of Art Miranda Lash | Regional Collaborations | Curator of Contemporary Art, Speed Art Museum Fionn Meade | Performance } Independent Curator Dominic Willsdon, Leanne and George Roberts | Socially-Engaged Practice | Curators of Education & Public Practice, SFMOMA Participants of this convening include: Cole Akers | Curator / Special Projects, The Glass House Wassan Al-Khudhairi | Chief Curator, CAM St. Louis Steven Bridges | Assistant Curator, Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, Michigan State University Laura Burkhalter | Curator, Des Moines Art Center Jill Dawsey | Associate Curator, MCA San Diego Janet Dees | Steven and Lisa Munster Tananbaum Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Mary & Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University Lauren Schell Dickens | Curator, San Jose Museum of Art Laurie Ann Farrell | Curator of Contemporary Art, Detroit Institute of Arts Courtenay Finn | Curator, Aspen Art Museum Ross Stanton Jordan | Curatorial Manager, Jane Addams Hull-House Museum Christine Kim | Associate Curator of Contemporary Art, LACMA Nancy Lim | Assistant Curator of Painting and Sculpture, SFMOMA Kiki Mazzucchelli | Independent Curator Felicia Mings | Coordinator of Andrew W. Mellon Academic Programs, the Art Institute of Chicago Humberto Moro | Curator, SCAD Museum of Art María Elena Ortiz | Associate Curator, Perez Art Museum Miami Jane Panetta | Associate Curator, Whitney Museum of American Art Katie Pfohl | Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art, New Orleans Museum of Art Lauren Ross | Independent Curator Jennifer Scanlan | Curatorial and Exhibitions Director, Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center) Raechell Smith | Director and Chief Curator, H&R Block Art Space) Anthony D. Stepter | Independent Curator Yesomi Umolu | Exhibitions Curator, Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago Margaret Winslow | Curator of Contemporary Art, Delaware Art Museum among others. Public Session: Out of Body: Black Identity in Abstraction Thursday September 14, 2017 3:30–4:30pm EXPO CHICAGO /DIALOGUES talk series Navy Pier, Chicago, IL Join Valerie Cassel Oliver (a session leader at this year’s Forum, and the Sydney and Frances Lewis Family Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts) in conversation with Naomi Beckwith (Marilyn and Larry Fields Curator, MCA Chicago), moderated by Romi Crawford (Visual Critical Studies and Liberal Arts Associate Professor, SAIC). Presented at the /DIALOGUES talk series as part of the Curatorial Forum, the panel will discuss how artists have used abstraction to challenge didactic ways of portraying the black body in art, exploring the work of Howardena Pindell, the influence of female and queer artists, and the space between artistic intention and critical response. More information here. The 2017 Curatorial Forum was made possible, in part, with the collaboration of Paula Crown and the PAHC/studio·lab. PAHC/studio·lab will also invite two curators to travel back to Chicago to further their research and engage with the studio as part of the Forum’s Associate Curators Program. Additional support was provided by VIA Art Fund; Sotheby’s; Art Design Chicago, an initiative of the Terra Foundation for American Art; Willis Towers Watson; and Terry Dowd Inc.