About me…
I’m a freelance curator/facilitator based in Manchester, UK, specialising in collective curatorial practice. I am guided by the potential for curating and arts processes to be collective acts to re-think traditional structures and demonstrate non-hierarchical approaches with the potential for wider social impact.
I have worked in the arts for over 20 years, most recently as Curator: Contemporary Art at Manchester Art Gallery (2005-2023). In recent years I have used evolving collaborative processes as alternatives to traditional temporary exhibitions. These processes enabled groups to explore creative decisions, co-authorship and co-creation, who/what is represented and which stories are told, as well as the curating process itself, using radical care and deliberative decision-making to work in more equitable ways.
In 2025, I completed a Group Facilitation Methods course with Institute of Cultural Affairs and I am now combining my experience of collective curatorial practice with skills in facilitation.
Interested in collaborative practice? I can offer…
Workshop: working collectively in the arts - Latest updates here
What does it mean to make decisions collectively?
A collective process such as co-curation, a shared project or network can be a brilliant way to bring people together to design ways of being, creating and working together. It can be a joyful, non-hierarchical process in which everyone feels valued and collectively empowered.
The aim of this workshop is to agree a set of shared principles to guide a collective process. You’ll be guided through a consensus-based method of facilitation to explore values and needs in relation to collective decision-making. What needs to be agreed and in place before we even start to make decisions together? How do we ensure that everyone’s contributions are valued? The workshop concludes with time for reflection and consideration of potential next steps.
Developed in collaboration with facilitator Alice Blackwell.
Consultancy
For arts workers, artists, groups or organisations interested in developing collective curatorial practice.
Talks and presentations
I have given many presentations to peers, conferences, institutions and students and am open to sharing my knowledge and experience.
If you’d like to discuss any of the above, please get in touch!
Thanks Akinyemi Oludele for the portrait!
“I enjoyed engaging with the process of building the principles in a non-hierarchical way and learning this new facilitation model of supporting people to build something collectively.”
Participant, Collective Curating workshop
“Rather than focusing on exhibition presentation and interpretation as a ‘fait accompli’, Clare’s recent curatorial practice has revealed, examined and questioned the systems and structures which traditionally underpin exhibition research, development and delivery… Our sector will benefit significantly from the ways of working Clare is seeking to explore.”
Kate Jesson, Curator: Modern and Contemporary Art, Manchester Art Gallery
“(Clare’s) session is frequently mentioned as a module highlight on our end of semester feedback questionnaires…the impact of her work on my students, in terms of how the democratising of curatorial and institutional practices has inspired them and facilitated their own decision-making as graduates, has been wonderful to see.”
Valerie O’Riordan, Senior Lecturer English Studies / Programme Leader for English and Creative Writing The University of Bolton