This Index is displayed in Alphabetic order
This freely available, online resource focuses on choreographic work in the context of the museum and addresses how we can better serve and represent the artist in this context. Drawn directly from our research into the field of practice through interviews, consultations and practical case studies, all information is designed specifically to improve conditions for artists working in this field and to assist museums and arts workers with this task. Equally, it is intended as a reference for artists working with museums to provide knowledge and to support their agency and autonomy in such situations.
This resource provides a foundation from which to build stronger relationships and working practices that support the successful development, production presentation and preservation of choreographic works in the museum. While not intended to be prescriptive or exhaustive, the intention is to support performing artists' safe and sustainable work within the museum context. Each choreographic practice or work is unique, requiring a tailored approach to ensure all the individuals involved in its creation and presentation are respected, supported, fairly compensated, and safe.
It is a guide to assist institutions of all types, regardless of size, staffing, resourcing etc., including state and national museums, commercial galleries and small-to-medium public galleries encompassing metropolitan, regional and remote museums and galleries, contemporary art spaces, contemporary craft and design spaces, and artist-run-initiatives (ARIs). Not all suggestions provided in this resource will be suitable for all museums, nor will all elements be relevant to the staging of every work. We recognise the need to work with the scope, possibilities, as well as limitations, of each specific museum for the well-being of all.
Finally, while this resource is focused specifically on choreography within museums, the prompts and suggestions may have broader applications and we encourage its use and dissemination wherever relevant.
A Choreographic Work
An art work resulting from choreographic practices which, in the case of this resource, is presented, commissioned and/or collected in/by a museum or gallery of any scale.
Artist
The lead artist of a given project.
Artist Team
All of the collaborators working with the lead artist.
Curator
The organiser of the project and often the artist’s main point of contact. We understand that this role may sometimes be executed or accompanied by a producer, exhibitions manager, curatorial assistant, etc.
Museum
For the purposes of this resource, we use the term ‘museum’ rather than ‘gallery’ or ‘institution’ to refer to the institutional body facilitating the presentation of choreographic work. We recognise that any number of alternative institutional framings — such as studios, arts centres, cultural centres, etc. — may also be spaces where choreographic practices are staged.
Brannigan, Erin et al., Precarious Movements Sector Resource (2024). Online: precariousmovements.com.
Longer version:
Brannigan, Erin, Lisa Catt, Rochelle Haley, Juanita Kelly-Mundine, Amita Kirpalani, Shelley Lasica, Louise Lawson, Hannah Mathews, Carolyn Murphy, Zoe Theodore and Pip Wallis. Precarious Movements Sector Resource (2024). Online: precariousmovements.com.
Precarious Movements: Choreography and the Museum brings artists, researchers and institutions into dialogue about good practice to support both the choreographer and the museum, and to sustain momentum in theory and practice around choreography and the visual arts. Since the turn of the 21st century, choreography has appeared more frequently in art galleries and museums and this has been accelerated, and to a degree normalised, by curatorial inquiries and critical developments associated with a reinvention of the museum. However, processes and protocols concerning performance conditions specific to choreography, curatorial practices, acquisitions, collection and conservation, have lagged behind. The project addresses this problem and its principle aims are to:
This research puts artists and creative practice at the centre of its inquiry and supports performers and choreographers as the primary end-users. The Project Team received an Australian Research Council Linkage grant of AU$392,828, which was managed through the University of NSW, Sydney, with in-kind support of AU$696,000 from the Partner Organisations for the period 2021–2024.
The outcomes of the project include:
The following Precarious Movements team members are the project’s Chief Investigators and Partner Investigators:
The following Precarious Movements team members worked closely with the Project Team members at the project’s Partner Institutions:
The following interviewees shared their experiences of choreographic work with the Project Team. Drawing on their varied expertise as archivists, artists, curators, conservators, producers and theorists, their interviews provided the Precarious Movements project with the vital qualitative data needed to develop the sector resource.
Julia Asperska
Charles Aubin
Philip Bither
Deanne Butterworth
Brian Castriota
Paula Coelho M. de Lima
Natasha Conland
Louise Curham
Fernanda D'Agostino Dias
Claire Eggleston
Rebeca Felipe Pelegrino
Alicia Frankovich
Susan Gibb
Agatha Gothe-Snape
Katy Green Loughrey
Alexandra Hardy
Maria Hassabi
Riana Head-Toussaint
Alice Heyward
Victoria Hunt
Beatrice Johnson
Miriam Kongstad
Lia Kramer
Lee Mingwei
Shu-Wen Lin
Adam Linder
Caroline McBride
Hélia Marçal
Michelangelo Miccolis
Steven Miller
Sophie O'Brien
Mel O'Callaghan
Louise O'Kelly
Megan Payne
Gabriela Pessoa de Oliveira
Sherry Phillips
Pavel Pyś
Brooke Stamp
Latai Taumoepeau
Elizabeth Thompson
Katleen Van Langendonck
Gaby Wijers
Sara Wookey
The following expert reviewers drew on their varied expertise—as artists, archivists, curators and theorists—to provide the Project Team with the invaluable guidance and advice needed to finalise the Precarious Movements sector resource.
Penelope Benton
Karen Cheung
Louise Curham
Tania Doropoulos
Rosalie Doubal
Tammi Gissell
Claire Eggleston
Alexandra Hardy
Riana Head-Toussaint
Abigail Levine
Rachel Mader
Louise O'Kelly
Jeanette Pacher
Edwina Green
Katy Green-Loughrey
Caroline Ang
Kristin Juarez
Victoria Hunt
Alice Heyward
The following workshop attendees participated in a Toolkit Review Session on 29 June 2023 at Tate Modern, during which they gave important feedback on a set of draft documents for the Precarious Movements sector resource.
Gaby Agis
Alexis Blake
Deborah Cane
Francesca Colussi
Katy Dammers
Rachael Davies
Rosalie Doubal
Bianca Figl
Hanna Gillgren
Angela Goh
Tamsin Hong
Jamila Johnson-Small
Lia Kramer
Rose Lejeune
Ligia Lewis
Rachel Mader
Emilie Magnin
Hélia Marçal
Joe Moran
Mel O’Callaghan
Cori Olinghouse
Florence Peake
Siri Peyer
Deborah Potter
Heidi Rustgaard
Susan Sentler
Noémie Solomon
Eve Stainton
Sara Wookey
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Caretaker: Institutional support and guidance from the National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) has been fundamental to the development of the Sector Resource for Choreographic Works in the Museum. In its role as caretaker, NAVA sustains the continuous publication of this resource by financing its web hosting.
Contacts:
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