Curator Profile: Frank Wick

Curators are a crucial part of the arts community, drawing meaning for the public, connecting work across time and geography, and, in the case of curators working with living artists, helping artists clarify their work. OVAC involves curators in many programs so artists are able to receive critical feedback and interact with someone who tries to understand their work.

Momentum Tulsa is October 10-24. Curators Scott Perkins and Frank Wick have been working with three Spotlight artists over the past two months to develop their projects. Also, they will jury the artwork that is submitted on September 26 and 27. To offer insight into the curators, we will profile the curators.

Frank Wick, artist & and exhibit design specialist at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History in Norman

Frank Wick received his MFA in sculpture from the University of Miami and his MA in design from the University of Iowa. His work has been exhibited across the country and internationally. Wick uses humor in his installations and conceptual pieces as a way to engage audiences in his commentary on life and the world around him.

Wick describes his own work in broad terms, as ‘maybe… an attempt at exploring the motivations of people.” He elaborates: “I spend a lot of time looking at things and thinking about how I might represent a difficult idea or problem simply.” The idea of curating was appealing to Wick as a way to organize ideas, and to use the perspective he had gained as an artist to help others.

He advises upcoming artists to stay self-critical and open to honest criticism from others. Seeking feedback from other artists they know and respect can help artists continue to grow. “I think it is essential to talk to other artists and to do it bluntly. Anyone can make art. The trick is to make sure it resonates with an audience you want it to resonate with.” At the end of the day, he reminds anyone making art: “it is important to keep making the work that makes you happy and that you believe in.”

The Momentum Spotlight offers three young Oklahoma artists each a $1,500 honorarium and interaction with a contemporary curator. An emerging curator works alongside the lead curator. Learn about serving as Momentum Spotlight Emerging Curator for 2010 here. To read more about Momentum, check out the rest of Jennifer Barron’s Art Focus Oklahoma article.