OPEN CALL: Curatorial Research Fellowships

Independent Curators International (ICI) is now accepting applications for the 2024 Curatorial Research Fellowships. The program reflects ICI’s commitment to the advancement of new knowledge and practices and supports curators’ research, travel, and the development of their professional networks, promoting experimentation, collaboration, and international engagement in the field.

Conceived to foster independent research, ICI’s Curatorial Research Fellowships offer a framework tailored to each curator’s field of critical inquiry. The fellows will receive mentorship specific to their research interests, as well as 10,000 USD in financial support. They will have access to ICI’s international networks of collaborators and programs to create opportunities for continued learning.

Fellows may be based anywhere as mentorship sessions will be held virtually. The fellowship period is eight months, between March and October 2024.

ICI’s Curatorial Research Fellowships program expanded in 2021, with the support of the Marian Goodman Gallery Initiative in honor of the late Okwui Enwezor, to include opportunities for curators of African descent based anywhere in the world and BIPOC curators based in the U.S. Additionally, ICI offers fellowships supporting Indigenous curators in the U.S. as well as curators focusing on the Mississippi River Basin as a site of cultural production.

In 2024, ICI will accept Fellows as a part of four Fellowship opportunities:
–Curatorial Research Fellowship for curators of African descent based anywhere in the world
–Curatorial Research Fellowship for BIPOC curators based in the U.S.
–Indigenous Curatorial Research Fellowship for Indigenous curators in the U.S.
–Mississippi River Basin Curatorial Research Fellowship for curators focusing on curatorial and artistic practices and alternative histories of the region defined by the Mississippi River

Eligibility: Minimum 5 years of experience working with contemporary artists. Open to curators working independently or with institutional affiliations. Candidates may apply to multiple fellowships. Please see ICI’s website for more detailed eligibility information for each fellowship.

Applications: Applications should be submitted via ICI’s application portal by January 15, 2024 at 11:59pm EST. To complete your application, please submit:

​–One-sentence proposal summary (40 words max)
–Description of proposed curatorial research, goals, and process, including the next three steps you plan to take to develop your research project (400 words max)
–Description of resources needed and/or travel plans (100 words max)
–Description of any mentorship needs to support the development of your project (100 words max)
–Preliminary list of artists, curators, writers, etc. relevant to the project (70 words max)
–Description of the relevance of the project to the field (100 words max)
–Description of how the Fellowship will impact the applicant’s practice (100 words max)
–Bio demonstrating relevant experience (250 words max)

Applications may be submitted in English, French, Spanish, or Portuguese, but a working knowledge of English is necessary for participation in the Fellowships, which are conducted in English.

For more information, visit ICI’s website or contact ICI’s Programs Coordinator, Zoe Dobuler, at zoe@curatorsintl.org.

About ICI

Independent Curators International (ICI) supports curators to help create stronger art communities through experimentation, collaboration, and international engagement.

Curators are arts community leaders and organizers who champion artistic practice; build essential infrastructures and institutions; and generate public engagement with art. We work with art spaces in the US and around the world to present exhibitions and public programs for broad audiences; and professional development initiatives for curators.

Our collaborative programs connect curators, artists, and audiences from across social, political, and cultural borders. They form an international framework for sharing knowledge and resources — promoting cultural exchange, access to art, and public awareness for the curator’s role.

ICI is a member of Coalition of Small Arts NYC (CoSA NYC).