Curating Tools with Joe Rowley: How To Write Good Exhibition Texts

How can exhibition texts enhance an audience’s understanding of art? And what makes a good exhibition text? Join host Maria Cynkier in the first episode of Curating Tools, as she interviews independent curator and producer, Joe Rowley. Discover why Joe hates art speak, where to find inspiration for your exhibition texts, and what ethical responsibilities curators have when communicating to audiences.

This podcast is brought to you by Call for Curators, providing professional art opportunities since 2012, and Node Center for Curatorial Studies, the pioneering e-learning platform for curators and art professionals founded in 2009.

Meet our guest, Joe Rowley, an independent curator based in Göteborg, Sweden. Currently, Rowley is working as the producer for Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art (GIBCA), curated by João Laia and launching in September 2023. He is also a member of the research group Ephemeral Care, which explores ethics structures and practice in artist-run initiatives, and an educator, running two programs related to arts writing for Node Center for Curatorial Studies.

Joe Rowley is an independent curator based in Göteborg, Sweden. Currently, Rowley is working as the producer for Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art (GIBCA), which launches in September 2023 curated by João Laia. He is a member of the research group Ephemeral Care which focuses on ethics structures and practice in artist-run initiatives; runs the transnational public art project Raumdeuter Radio, which couples audio artworks with public transport routes;  and was formerly the artistic director of artist-run space HUTT in Nottingham, UK. Rowley is also an educator, running two programs related to arts writing for NODE Center for Curatorial Studies.

Visit Joe’s website and follow him on Instagram.

Our host ⁠Maria Cynkier⁠ is an independent curator and researcher working in the fields of art, ecology and digital culture. In her practice, she is concerned with the social, political and material impacts of new technologies on humans, non-humans and the environment. She often works within the framework of speculative storytelling and worldbuilding tactics that enable critical dialogue.

Listen to the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Amazon Music.