CIMAM announces a new Award and Working Groups 2020-22
PR 15 January 2020
CIMAM announces the creation of a new award to acknowledge visionary practice within the museum sector.
Barcelona, January 15, 2020: CIMAM elected its new board for 2020–22 during its Annual Conference in Sydney in November 2019 hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art. The board plays a vital leadership role in supporting the mission of CIMAM to ensure the continued recognition and sustainability of museums, collections, and archives of modern and contemporary art as contributors to the cultural, social, and economic well-being of society.
The 2020–22 board members are Mami Kataoka, President of CIMAM and Director, Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan. Suzanne Cotter, Secretary-Treasurer of CIMAM and Director, Mudam Luxembourg—Musée d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg. Agustín Pérez Rubio, Curator 11th Berlin Biennale. Berlin, Germany. Ann-Sofi Noring, Co-director, Moderna Museet. Stockholm, Sweden. Bart De Baere, Director, M HKA— Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen. Antwerpen, Belgium. Calin Dan, Director, MNAC Bucharest—National Museum of Contemporary Art. Bucharest, Romania. Ernestine White- Mifetu, Director, William Humphreys Art Gallery. Kimberley, South Africa. Eugene Tan, Director, National Gallery Singapore, and Singapore Art Museum. Singapore. Frances Morris, Director, Tate Modern. London, United Kingdom. Malgorzata Ludwisiak, Director, Centre for Contemporary Art. Warsaw, Poland. Rhana Devenport, Director, Art Gallery of South Australia. Adelaide, Australia. Sarah Glennie, Director, National College of Art and Design. Dublin, Ireland. Saskia Bos, Art historian and curator. Amsterdam, Netherlands. Suhanya Raffel, Museum Director, M+. Hong Kong, China. Victoria Noorthoorn, Director, Museo de Arte Moderno de Buenos Aires. Buenos Aires, Argentina.
During their honorary tenure, CIMAM board members each contribute to practical and strategic working groups that look to ensure global participation and perspective, acknowledge visionary practices, and to address some of the more urgent challenges facing modern and contemporary museums today.
CIMAM Outstanding Museum Practice Award
Launched in November 2019, the CIMAM Outstanding Museum Practice Award recognizes exemplary practices in the programs and activities of museums around the world. It is dedicated to promoting excellence in innovation in modern and contemporary art museums, and to encouraging exchange and sustainability within the sector. The Award aims to give visibility to outstanding cases of success in modern and contemporary art museums and to establish an online directory of examples as references for the international community of modern and contemporary art museum professionals.
Who can submit a nomination? The Award is open to anyone in the museum field who wishes to submit a nomination of an outstanding museum practice or project that should be recognized by CIMAM. Nominations may be submitted by individuals and institutions responsible for the area of activity, or by a third party. CIMAM membership is not required for a museum to be nominated.
What are the criteria for nomination? Practices and initiatives that are exemplary in achieving the museum's mission and for innovative approaches to core activities, including conservation, education, collection, exhibitions, publications, research, public access, communication, governance, sustainability, and fundraising. Read full details at cimam.org.
What is the program calendar?
End of April 2020: Deadline to submit nominations.
June 2020: a shortlist of practices by the Award Committee will be made public.
October 2020: CIMAM Members will vote online for the final best 2–3 practices.
November 2020: the most voted proposals are announced at the CIMAM Annual Conference in Poland.
The 2020–22 CIMAM Outstanding Museum Practice committee consists of six CIMAM board members: Suzanne Cotter (Chair), Suhanya Raffel, Ernestine White-Mifetu, Ann-Sofi Noring, Malgorzata Ludwisiak, and Rhana Devenport.
Museum Watch Program
In 2012 CIMAM initiated a series of statements regarding difficult situations affecting Museums and Collections around the world. This led to the Museum Watch Program which serves as an advocacy program addressing specific critical situations that impact the operations of museums, not-for-profit institutions, and individuals working in the modern and contemporary art field, sometimes in regions affected by world economic and political crises.
The 2020–22 Museum Watch Committee consists of six CIMAM board members: Bart de Baere (Chair), Calin Dan, Sarah Glennie, Malgorzata Ludwisiak, Victoria Noorthoorn, and Eugene Tan.
Sustainability and Ecology in Museum Practice
This program was launched in November 2019 with the aim of responding to the current climate emergency and of working together with ICOM’s Sustainability Working Group to identify and put together a set of best practice guidelines. The group on sustainability and ecology will be addressing the following questions and developing them collectively with CIMAM members: How can museums respond to the climate emergency?
The 2020–22 Sustainability and Ecology in Museum Practice group consists of five CIMAM board members: Frances Morris (Chair), Suzanne Cotter, Mami Kataoka, Ann-Sofi Noring, and Rhana Devenport.
CIMAM’s Annual Conference Contents Committee
The committee works together with the hosting institution to identify the conference topic and sub-subjects for each day. The Annual Conference aims to anticipate and discuss questions relating to the running and development of contemporary art museums and collections worldwide.
The 2020–22 Contents Committee consists of five CIMAM board members: Saskia Bos, Agustín Pérez Rubio, Eugene Tan, Victoria Noorthoorn, and Malgorzata Ludwisiak.
Engaging with ICOM – International Council of Museums
As part of CIMAM’s strategic goals for this triennial, this new working group initiated in 2020 will work closely with ICOM on key issues that concern museums globally, such as climate change and ethics.
The 2020–22 Engaging with ICOM group consists of six CIMAM board members: Mami Kataoka (Chair), Suzanne Cotter, Suhanya Raffel, Frances Morris, Ernestine White-Mifetu, and Bart de Baere.
Travel Grant Program
It supports the curatorial and research development of individuals through their attendance at the Annual Conference. The aim of this working group is to secure funding for the program ensuring the geographical diversity of opportunities in underrepresented areas.
The 2020–22 Travel Grant Program committee consists of three CIMAM board members: Agustín Pérez Rubio, Eugene Tan, and Victoria Noorthoorn.
Museum Best Practices
It consists of identifying documents of reference for the profession that can be endorsed or shared on the CIMAM website. This is an ongoing task for all CIMAM board members. The establishment and support of professional codes of practice and ethical standards for institutions and individuals are key for CIMAM as it is the forum of reference for the international professional community.
Fundraising
This is an ongoing task for all CIMAM board members. As a largely volunteer-driven organization and constituted as a not-for-profit organization, CIMAM relies heavily on the generous support of individuals and organizations. CIMAM is led by a voluntary board of contemporary art museum professionals that set the strategy and oversee the operations of the committee. CIMAM is funded through the generous support of a group of patrons and its membership.