tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-394751201869491915.post6633658910066365701..comments2023-09-12T01:00:54.512-07:00Comments on New Media Narratives : A Pound of CurationUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-394751201869491915.post-75982676317237776622016-02-29T09:29:04.688-08:002016-02-29T09:29:04.688-08:00Ok, I've come to reconcile taste-making curati...Ok, I've come to reconcile taste-making curation with the medieval notion of <i>curatus</i>, a priest devoted to the caring of souls (Morton, 2011). In a secular world, taste makers fulfill this role. Through lists, pinboards, selection, playlists etc. they promise to nurture one's soul or enrich lives through the sharing of their knowledge and experience. To that extent, curation is more than just a list or a set of links. It is a list with a purpose or a promise. <br /><br />By that measure, Pinterest is chock full of curation and mostly devoid of Curation.<br /><br /><br />Reference<br />---------<br />Morton, T. (2011, September 9). A brief history of the word 'curator' | Art | Agenda | Phaidon. Retrieved February 29, 2016, from http://ca.phaidon.com/agenda/art/articles/2011/september/09/a-brief-history-of-the-word-curator/<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-394751201869491915.post-62082503828645624242016-02-17T09:49:36.774-08:002016-02-17T09:49:36.774-08:00You rightly point out my bias toward librarians/ar...You rightly point out my bias toward librarians/archivists and the 20th century. I do think capital-C 'Curation' is more than just selection or taste-making. That's the crux of the Hermitage argument and I attempted to wrestle with it on that basis and within the context of our readings. One tortured analysis later I think it's safe to say Pinterest is not in-of-itself 'Curation' though it might conceivably be used as a tool of/for curation (in the 20th c sense).<br /><br />To further torture/beat that dead horse, Pinterest might be seen as a combination of crowd-sourced collection, micro-exhibits, and an accompanied shift in authorial POV from exhibit/collection managers to the audience/individual. <br /><br />That said, you're absolutely right. Words take on new meanings and 21st century curation is a different beast. Preservation has fallen by the wayside and selection now dominates. The new formula is an ounce of preservation and a pound of curation, as it were.*<br /><br />Lastly, an interesting take on human vs AI curation: <br /><br />https://medium.com/cuepoint/music-curation-by-intelligent-machine-why-we-need-anarchy-in-the-a-i-75dbae2601fe#.3l669r92j<br /><br />-----<br />*ok that was just awful. I'll stop.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-394751201869491915.post-23303740896558508582016-02-15T21:23:00.295-08:002016-02-15T21:23:00.295-08:00Mark -- I could't agree more with your reactio...Mark -- I could't agree more with your reaction to the Hermitage museum's post about curators. <br /><br />Indeed, I kept thinking that the word curator was being used differently in the digital context than we had known it in the 20th century. Any good philologist will tell you that deep-seated affection for one version of a definition is misplaced; as definitions derive from usage. If usage changes, then we must adapt. Perhaps museum curators should select a different articulation of their professional status by adding additional words, perhaps "archivist and curator?" or "exhibit director?" <br /><br />Title bloat is an important way that not-for-profit groups can retain high quality talent on the cheap. Indeed, as a designer, titles on business cards are possibly the least meaningful metrics of life status. When I opened a pop-up coffee shop a couple years ago, we gave our head barista the title "Director of Coffee." I didn't notice a backlash from the world's directors. <br /><br />But I think the point that curation is more than a basic selection of links or mere taste-making is misplaced. There's something about curation in the professional sense that is lost on the light-touch digital version; though I am not sure how I would refine human digital choices in presenting material to distinguish from the phenom of algorithmic curation.... seanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12604141109537569846noreply@blogger.com