Hello

Hi, I’m Jenine. I am a freelance curator working in the West Midlands. I have been based in Birmingham for the last 9 years and have worked with some of the regions most respected visual arts organisations. In 2018 I decided to fly solo and go freelance with the promise to myself that I only work on projects that intrigue and excite me. The last three years have been a whirlwind but when Covid hit I was at a loss without a platform from which to communicate my work, share and talk about my interests professionally or indeed to meaningfully respond to issues I was passionate about. 

With the support of the Arts Council Emergency Fund I was able to build this new website. Functioning to showcase my skills, services and expertise, it will also be my platform for communicating what I am working on, projects I’m involved in and issues I care about personally and professionally. 

Much of this would have been pretty difficult to achieve without the Forward – Freelancer Development Programme organised by AMA and delivered by the infinitely knowledgeable and inspiring Ishreen Bradley and Mel Larsen. My time spent on this programme alongside many other arts and heritage freelancers whose livelihoods have been pushed to their most fragile, has been a fantastic opportunity for me to pause and consider what I have achieved to date, how the work I have done has value and purpose within the cultural economy and to think about what I do in terms of services. I have looked to diversify the skills I’ve accumulated over the last decade and to market them in a way which demonstrates my passion for the sector and my ability to get stuff done! 

I underestimated what a mammoth task writing and compiling this website would be and it would not have been possible without the assistance of Heather Thomas and her keen and creative eye – thanks for putting up with me on this journey and making a website I am really proud of and keen to show off.

But in many ways, this is where the hard work begins. I am looking forward to updating colleagues old and new across the arts and heritage sectors with whom I can share the things I am passionate about, projects I’m working on and how I might have the skills to help you make things happen. 

I am so looking forward to updating you all on my work, from my writing about art, heritage and culture – I will be sharing some older pieces of published writing, alongside more informal musings which explore my current research interests.

I will share snippets about projects I am working on with others and lots about what is happening with my own curatorial projects. Early last year (2019) I was awarded a Developing Your Creative Practice Grant to explore my interest in contemporary art and heritage, so expect lots of content related to that. I was also the recipient of the A-N Artist Bursary scheme which I intend to use to visit best practice examples of rural art programmes as I research setting up my own curatorial project in 2021. 

In short, there is loads to update you on and I hope you enjoy what I share with you over the coming weeks and months. 

Please follow me on Instagram and Twitter @jmg_creative, on Facebook and LinkedIn.