Overview

Mussawir Contemporary invites emerging, mid-, and early-career curators to submit research-driven exhibition proposals for its Fall 2026–2027 programme.

The initiative positions exhibitions as sites of experimentation, dialogue, and knowledge production, foregrounding curatorial thinking as research practice rather than display alone.

Three selected proposals will be developed into full exhibitions during the Fall season.

Focus & Conceptual Framework

Proposals should centre on:

• Critical inquiry
• Archival research
• Material investigations
• Socially engaged methodologies
• Process-driven, research-based approaches
• Submissions may be:
• Speculative or exploratory
• Artist-led or archive-based
• Community-rooted or institutionally critical
• Interdisciplinary and transnational

Key Considerations (Proposal Requirements)

Applications must demonstrate:

• A clearly articulated research question or framework
• Engagement with theoretical, historical, material, or social contexts
• A strong curatorial methodology (spatial, material, conceptual unfolding)
• Awareness of site, audience, ethics, and positionality
• Openness to experimental formats (exhibition, performance, archive, publication, workshop, etc.)

Eligibility

• Open to emerging, mid-, and early-career curators, artists, designers, researchers (individuals or collectives), and PhD candidates
• Applicants from South Asia, Africa, and the MENA region are eligible
• Priority given to UAE-based applicants
• No formal curatorial training required

Support Provided

Selected curators receive:

• Exhibition space and production support
• Logistical support
• Travel and accommodation support (if applicable)
• Curatorial mentoring and research dialogue
• Modest project budget and honorarium (if applicable)
• Documentation and publication opportunities
• Public programming support

Application Requirements

Submit via email:

• Curatorial Statement (max 500 words)
• Project Proposal (max 2 pages)
• CV (max 2 pages)
• Portfolio (optional, max 5 images or links)
• References (optional, 1–2 recommenders)
• Email: [email protected]
• Subject Line: Curatorial Open Call – Fall Programme 2026–2027

Evaluation Criteria

• Proposals will be assessed based on:
• Critical rigor and originality
• Strength of research grounding
• Feasibility within gallery context and timeline
• Ethical and political sensitivity
• Capacity to engage audiences meaningfully