My interview with Kimberli Gant went live today. She's a curator at the Brooklyn Museum, but in Modern and Contemporary Art, not Prints and Drawings. In fact, Brooklyn doesn't have a print curator. Each curator is responsible for their respective areas and also has access to and shares the works on paper collection. It's not a model I would put in place if I were a museum director, but then, I'm not in charge. But I digress.
I met Kimberli for the first time at the IFPDA print fair in October 2022. She was about to moderate a panel featuring several members of the collective Black Women of Print, including Platemark guest LaToya Hobbs (s2e11) and future Platemark guest Jennifer Mack-Watkins (s3e27—stay tuned). We both were resting our feet in the central lounge-y area. I noticed her and thought, oh yeah, she’s a curator. There is a look. She appeared like she was sorting out her purchase priority list and doing the math in her head. If you have known me at all, you know I felt no hesitation talking to her. We chatted for several minutes; enough for me to know she would be a great interviewee. And I was right.
It just goes to show, you shouldn’t hesitate to talk to strangers, especially at a print fair.
Photo credit: Andar Sawyers
