Curating Contemporary Art Collections in Scotland

What does it mean to bring works of art together in a collection? What is distinctive about this or that collection? How, and indeed why, should contemporary art be collected? Museum curators, private collectors, even artists, regularly ponder these questions. Such deliberations usually happen behind the scenes, but this website brings them to light, drawing on interviews with curators working in collections around the country and individuals immersed in collecting.  

Public Collections encompasses all those institutions that have actively acquired contemporary art since 2000 in Scotland, and includes detailed profiles of their collecting policies, as well as case studies of key works of art they have acquired.

Private Collections is particularly concerned with private collections that have sought a public platform (this section will be developed later). 

Enabling Collecting is a varied section, looking at how acquisitions are financed, how curatorial development and research is supported, and what obligations and challenges there might be for the conservators of contemporary art.  In particular this section profiles certain nationwide strategies for supporting collecting that have been launched since 2000.

Futurecollection is a space for more speculative writing that imagines various futures for collecting and collections.

Reading Room provides reading recommendations and a portal to further research and resources in this area.


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