meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Slate Culture Feed

Working: How to Curate a Small Town Art Museum

Slate Culture Feed

Slate Podcasts

Music, Tv & Film, Arts

4.22K Ratings

🗓️ 24 March 2024

⏱️ 44 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week, host June Thomas talks to Courtney Gilbert, curator of the Sun Valley Museum of Art in Ketchum, Idaho. In the interview, Courtney digs into the process of curating a “non-collecting” museum, which means they start from scratch with each exhibition, and they don’t keep a large inventory of pieces. She also explains how she comes up with ideas for exhibitions, what a good exhibition should do, and how she serves her specific community.  After the interview, June and co-host Isaac Butler talk about the importance of creating guidelines and best-practices for their work.  In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Courntey discusses her education and career journey.    Send your questions about creativity and any other feedback to working@slate.com or give us a call at (304) 933-9675. Podcast production by Cameron Drews. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows—you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Working. Sign up now at slate.com/workingplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

I think a good exhibition should pose a question and then it should bring together a number of

0:15.8

voices if it's a group show that provide different answers to that question and

0:20.6

maybe not definitive answers but just different avenues for question and

0:23.3

just different avenues for considering it and what the possibilities are.

0:30.0

Welcome back to working.

0:31.1

I'm your host Isaac Butler. And I'm'm your host, Isaac Butler.

0:32.8

And I'm your other host, June Thomas.

0:35.6

June, I feel like it's been a while. I've been recording with Ronald. You've been

0:39.4

recording with Ronald. This is our first episode recording together in in quite some time how have you been?

0:44.2

Well I feel the same way I've been missing you I've been well though I would

0:48.6

surely have been even better if I'd see more of you isak. I missed you. Oh, thank you.

0:54.0

Who do we have on the show this week?

0:56.0

Well, the voice we heard at the top of the show

0:58.5

belongs to Courtney Gilbert.

1:00.0

She is the curator of the Sun Valley Museum of Art, which is based in Ketchum, Idaho.

1:07.0

And I spoke with Courtney for a piece.

1:09.1

I was reporting for the New York Times Tea magazine about how the way that pop culture treats aliens is changing

1:16.5

and usually those kinds of conversations are pretty focused you're looking for insight

1:20.9

hopefully a quote that pops.

1:22.8

But I found myself asking Courtney questions about the museum

1:26.2

and the way she works there.

1:27.6

You know, we were talking for a long time

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Slate Podcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Slate Podcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.