tasting notes with:
Christian Waguespack.
occupation:
Curator of 20th Century Art at the New Mexico Museum of Art.
venue:
Hervé Wine Bar, Santa Fe.
drinking:
D. H. Lescombes Cabernet Sauvignon.
recommended food pairing:
Whatever my boyfriend is cooking tonight.
film pairing recommendation:
Rosemary’s Baby. Although pregnant women should not drink, even if it is the devil’s baby.
current mood:
I’m in a good mood to be here, but a little blue because I had to say goodbye to my grandpa this morning.
one thing you wanted to happen this year that did:
My solo birthday trip to the Grand Canyon.
the biggest challenge you face this year:
After the opening of Good Company, the next two exhibitions because they’re opening one right after the other.
the biggest challenge you face tomorrow:
I have not thought about tomorrow yet!
what was your first job?
Working at a custom frame shop in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
what did it teach you?
Not to bleed on the art.
what is one of your first important experiences that drew you to art?
Out of high school, a Rodin sculpture exhibition came to Baton Rouge. It meant a lot for me that it was in my hometown, and not in a big city like New Orleans. It was really special going with my family and we still talk about it. It’s an experience I want to recreate for audiences here.
teach us how to curate an exhibition in three steps:
1. Brace yourself and take a deep breath.
2. Assess the material you are working with, get an idea of your scope.
3. Figure out what your community needs that they don’t know that they need, and make your exhibition that.
one thing the collections of the NM Art Museum have taught you:
The power of this state to draw together so many different people in so many different ways.
a curatorial trend that should die:
Aggressive compartmentalizing. Here in New Mexico, Native arts, Hispanic arts, anglo arts are often treated as separate, I’d like to see that dissolved.
what comes next?
On November 17, we open Wait Until Dark, curated from our collection of nocturnes, along with a space for education and engagement called the Nightlife Imagination Station.
