20191212_MUN_NewsOutputsMasterCuratorialStudies2

Santander, Bilbao and San Sebastian were the first three cities visited by the students of the second year of the Master in Curatorial Studies at the University of Navarra Museum on their cultural outings. Three cities that are home to some of the most interesting museum projects in Spain, such as the Botín Center, the Guggenheim Museum and Tabakalera, and where the new generation of curators has been able to establish contacts with other artistic projects and professionals in the sector.

For Juan Santiago Martinez, 24, from El Salvador, these trips are relevant for his training as curators because "they provide knowledge from the point of view of experienced curators, we can have contact with the cultural reality of the north of Spain and we become familiar with large installations". In this sense, he stresses that it can contribute to "increase my perspective of museums and the work that is done there. I feel that as a curator, financial aid will help me understand different ways of working and approaching art.

Her colleague Nadia Rosalía Islas, 30 years old and with experience in the field of curatorship and the art market in Mexico City, these outings also "help us understand some existing and functional curatorial methodologies or models at different levels and with different objectives. In that way, they give us a broad perspective of our possible field of action".

 

In this artistic route through the north of the peninsula, the students have had the opportunity to "review spaces that are key to understanding the dynamics of cities in the current cultural scene," as Islas defines, who also stresses that these projects inspire him "to have some reference lines to aspire to. They say that if you are going to do something, keep your eyes on the big ones. This way, self-criticism will be important, not condescending, to generate different proposals".

 

Thus, in Santander, in addition to the Botin Center, they visited the conference room of exhibitions of the Library Services of Cantabria, with Juan Riancho, director of the Siboney Gallery and Arte Santander. In Bilbao they toured Art House Zinema of Bilbao Arte, accompanied by its director, Juan Zapater, and visited the La Alhóndiga center, with the heads of Programming and Marketing, Raquel Esparza, and Bárbara Epalza, respectively. On their visit to the Guggenheim Museum visit they were accompanied by María Vidaurreta, the Museum's External Relations Coordinator; Daniel Vega, director of Exhibitions and Conservation; and several curators, including Manuel Cirauqui. They learned about the structure of the center and how it works, as well as the exhibitions and the curators' daily work , the challenges they face.

Finally, in Irun they visited Gordailua, the Heritage Collections Center of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa and in San Sebastian the Tabakalera center, as well as the programs of study of the artists Manu Muniategiandikoetxea and Javier Balda, in the town of Astigarraga.

For Martínez, graduate in Humanities from the University of Navarra, knowing different professions within the world of the sector "offers clues and tips to approach the task of bringing art closer to the people. It provides a panoramic view of art and other fields, such as attracting audiences, and lets you know that creativity is core topic. For his part, Islas believes that "knowing this range of possibilities also financial aid to find similarities with our own voice and interests in order to find paths for action".