Ginger Gregg Duggan and Judy Fox, founding partners of C², talk about their roles in the creative process—as curators.

We’re super-excited about the lineup of speakers we’ve got for INVT21. Like for previous conferences, we’ve once again brought in people from a wide range of disciplines and practices. We’ve got working designers, artists, and authors (sometimes all on one hyphenate). We’ll also be hearing from creatives who are educators, activists, and voices for change.

Two of our 2021 speakers think of themselves not as “makers” but as “spectators”, though we think they play a much bigger role in the world of design and art. Ginger Gregg Duggan and Judy Fox are the founding partners of C² (curatorsquared). Together they develop exhibitions of international, cross-media contemporary art and design that explore current cultural issues. Their work can be seen in museums and university and art school galleries across the US and abroad.

On January 14, Ginger, Judy, and Assistant Curator at Museum of Craft and Design Ariel Zaccheo will give us a behind-the-scenes look at an upcoming exhibit for our “In/Visible Transparency: Design by Time” Special Session.

Here are some of their thoughts about their roles in the creative process.

What did 2020 bring into focus for you that you want to Re:Make, Re:Think, Re:Imagine, or Re:Design for 2021?

During this time of being shutdown and shut-in, with our exhibitions that were on tour being shuttered behind the locked doors of museums, we found that we just couldn’t stop thinking about the effects of this situation on the role of designers, and our need, as curators, to keep working. This was the genesis of our online presentations, particularly Design by Distance, a collaboration with the Museum of Craft and Design.

What is your relationship to the creative process?

We are not makers, but spectators. We try to make sense of what we are seeing and bring together constellations of works of art and design that reflect the conditions in which we are living.

How or where do you find inspiration?

In the work of designers and artists.

What was one of your biggest creative challenges?

Repeatedly we find that museums do not understand the need for strong, thoughtful graphics and exhibition design. We find this so baffling, as these are institutions dedicated to visual expression. Working with museums to bring them to understand this, and to bring into the curatorial process graphic and exhibition designers, is a recurring challenge.

When did you first realize you needed to be in a creative field?

For both of us, it was a given. There never was any doubt or other option.

Bonus Round: Who is one of your heroes and why?

In the world of fashion, Ying Gao, a designer based in Montreal, is top of our list. She brings together the most advanced technologies with an incredibly refined sensibility, always guided by psychological imperatives. Plus she is so very lovely and easy to work with.