Curatorial Studies

Jake Webster

ART 290
Curatorial Studies: Theory and Practice
Prof. Ian Weaver

In Curatorial Studies, students develop a familiarity with the practices of curation in institutional spaces. The course culminates in an exhibition of the work of a local artist, curated by the students.

In the fall semester of 2022, the class worked with Jake Webster, an Elkhart-based sculptor and mixed media artist. Webster is particularly interested in the difficulties associated with being an artist in the Midwest, where the public tends to place less import on the arts. One of the central tenents of public humanities work is to make work accessible to a broad audience, and this was manifest in the final installation, a curation of Webster's artwork for our local community. Webster gave a talk at the opening reception, which occured Friday, December 2nd, 2022.

Below you can find images of the students meeting Jake Webster in his studio and their creation of maquettes as they began to plan the exhibit of his work. The final images show the public exhibit once it was ready to open.