THE NEW ESTABLISHMENT: A Talk About Architecture and Design Curating in the 21st Century

As we enter the dawn of a new curatorial era spurred by digital innovation and greater inclusivity, PIN–UP and Maharam brought together three path-breaking leaders — José Esparaza Chong Cuy, chief curator and executive director of Storefront for Art and Architecture; V Mitch McEwen, head curator of IdeasCity, the New Museum offshoot; and Alexandra Cunningham, curator of contemporary design and the Edward and Helen Hintz Secretarial Scholar at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. An extension of the New Establishment series featured in PIN–UP 26, the panel conversation, hosted at Maharam’s Park Avenue headquarters, was a welcome opportunity for the three curators to exchange ideas and discuss the different approaches they bring to their respective institutions, not to mention the important question: are they or aren’t they part of a "new establishment"? It was a meeting of the minds that offered the audience of design world luminaries much to talk about over a post-panel brunch catered by Laila Gohar. We’ve put together an excerpt for your viewing pleasure, but documentation of the entire hour conversation is also available here.

Credits
Cameras: Carlos Cardona, Pierce Jackson, and Rand Rosenberg
Sound and Lighting: Soundhouse
Editing: Pierce Jackson (Team Collective), Dylan Siegel, and Whitney Mallett
Filmed at Maharam, New York
Produced by PIN–UP
Co-produced by Michael Bullock
© 2019 FEBU Publishing