Curatorial Leadership in Collections (CLiC)

Our museum collections tell stories about the world we live in and the world we want to see.

How can contemporary artists unlock the potential of our museums and help them develop new stories? How can working with artists help museums connect with Scotland’s diverse communities? What are the benefits of equalities-focused working in collections? And how can we support museums to work with artists in more open-ended and imaginative ways?

Our Curatorial Leadership in Collections (CLiC) project supports a network of contemporary art curators from collections across Scotland and shares learning with the wider museums sector.

The CLiC: Connect and Activate project explores how working with contemporary artists can strengthen collections, developing new stories and reaching new audiences

Working with CLiC partners at University of Edinburgh Art Collection we have created a toolkit to help those working with artists in collections. It contains advice and case studies alongside signposting to a range of available resources.

Explore our CLiC Connect and Activate toolkit

Throughout the pandemic we worked with our CLiC Partners to explore how contemporary art can make a difference. We produced new resources to help museums and galleries understand how artists can work with them to inspire communities, generate new tools, allow hidden histories to surface, and imagine a better future.

Explore our CLiC Connect and Activate case studies

The programme received funding from Museums Galleries Scotland, the national development body for museums. It received an Art Fund Curatorial Network Grant, designed to help groups share their expertise for the benefit of museum collections and audiences, and was supported by Creative Scotland.

CLiC was first developed in 2018 in partnership with Dr Kirstie Skinner and Outset Scotland. The CLiC programme worked with the following partners:

Gallery of Modern Art Glasgow
Katie Bruce, Producer/ Curator

Glasgow Women’s Library
Adele Patrick, Lifelong Learning and Creative Development Manager

Hunterian Art Gallery
Dominic Paterson, Lecturer in History of Art, Curator of Contemporary Art

The McManus
Anna Robertson, Fine and Applied Art Team Leader

Paisley Museum and Art Galleries
Andrea Kusel, Curator of Art

Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art
Lucy Askew, Chief Curator SNGMA

University of Edinburgh
Julie-Ann Delaney, Art Collections Curator

City Art Centre
David Patterson, Curator Fine Art, City of Edinburgh Council

Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh
Emma Nicholson, Head of Creative Programmes, RBGE

You can follow the CLiC project on Twitter and Instagram @ActivateMuseums