Solicit nominations from Mexico and cultivate the momentum gained for securing nominations for Canadian exhibitions. Colleague response to email blasts in some cases was low. Nominators did not send adequate materials (especially visuals and in particular installation shots) and committee members and, presumably, AAMC members needed to conduct independent research in order to make an informed decision. The discrepancy between those exhibitions seen in person and those judged through on-line images and written descriptions should be narrowed. Nominations from the membership should not appear on the AAMC website until a final slate is determined. The main reason for this is that if a nominated project is already listed on the AAMC website, someone else might not nominate it because he/she sees that the nomination has already been made. The Prize Committee depends in part on the number of nominations submitted by the membership to determine the slate (any nomination made by more than two individuals is automatically added to the slate). There are currently 1100 AAMC members and roughly 130 of them voted. Why the low voter turnout? Parity is the most frequently mentioned concern among members of the Prize Committee and jury members. Understandably, well-funded projects from larger institutions (and especially those in New York, where the majority of curators make frequent visits) have an edge. Some of this could be explained by such statistics as: 45% of AAMC members work in cities larger than 2,000,000 (thus larger cities have an advantage); the largest percentage (27%) of AAMC members work in the area of Modern and Contemporary Art (thus the higher number of nominations and winners in this area). The primary role of the Prize Committee is to attend to matters of diversity in geography and discipline, and level the playing field by identifying worthy projects from smaller institutions and from institutions of more limited budgets without ignoring great projects that do not fit that description. This mandate needs to be stressed to the future Chair and Prize Committee members in order for the slate to be well-rounded and well-presented. Areas of Improvement (for Awards that are determined by the Jury System) This aspect of the Prize Committee generally works well and runs smoothly in largest part because of the organization and leadership of Sally Block and Hannah Howe. Jury Chairs, too, take strong leadership positions and the response to the jury system has been positive. Some areas that need attention or improvement are:
Solicit nominations from Mexico and cultivate the momentum gained for securing nominations for Canadian exhibitions. Colleague response to email blasts in some cases was low. Nominators did not send adequate materials (especially visuals and in particular installation shots) and committee members and, presumably, AAMC members needed to conduct independent research in order to make an informed decision. The discrepancy between those exhibitions seen in person and those judged through on-line images and written descriptions should be narrowed. Nominations from the membership should not appear on the AAMC website until a final slate is determined. The main reason for this is that if a nominated project is already listed on the AAMC website, someone else might not nominate it because he/she sees that the nomination has already been made. The Prize Committee depends in part on the number of nominations submitted by the membership to determine the slate (any nomination made by more than two individuals is automatically added to the slate). There are currently 1100 AAMC members and roughly 130 of them voted. Why the low voter turnout? Parity is the most frequently mentioned concern among members of the Prize Committee and jury members. Understandably, well-funded projects from larger institutions (and especially those in New York, where the majority of curators make frequent visits) have an edge. Some of this could be explained by such statistics as: 45% of AAMC members work in cities larger than 2,000,000 (thus larger cities have an advantage); the largest percentage (27%) of AAMC members work in the area of Modern and Contemporary Art (thus the higher number of nominations and winners in this area). The primary role of the Prize Committee is to attend to matters of diversity in geography and discipline, and level the playing field by identifying worthy projects from smaller institutions and from institutions of more limited budgets without ignoring great projects that do not fit that description. This mandate needs to be stressed to the future Chair and Prize Committee members in order for the slate to be well-rounded and well-presented. Areas of Improvement (for Awards that are determined by the Jury System) This aspect of the Prize Committee generally works well and runs smoothly in largest part because of the organization and leadership of Sally Block and Hannah Howe. Jury Chairs, too, take strong leadership positions and the response to the jury system has been positive. Some areas that need attention or improvement are:
board_notes_5.15.11.docx