News — Apr 21, 2017

Amsterdam, April 20, 2017 - Archey is an American curator and art critic formerly based in Berlin and New York. She comes to the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam from the New York-based organization e-flux, where she worked from 2014–2017 as an editor, founding the participatory web publishing platform e-flux conversations.

Archey’s writing and curatorial work often focus on issues relating to society and the individual, such as feminism, identity and technology. Her criticism regularly takes form as exhibition reviews, artist profiles, and thematic features in magazines such as frieze and ArtReview, as well as literary and theoretical essays published within anthologies by institutions such as the Whitney Museum of American Art, MIT Press and the New Museum. Archey is a 2016 Creative Capital | Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant recipient for short-form writing.

Archey recently curated Sharing Love, the monographic exhibition of media artist Ann Hirsch at ICA at MECA in Portland, Maine (2016) and organized readings of the satirical feminist dictionary, Women Inc. Lexicon at Artists Space (New York) and ICA London (2015). She co-curated the survey exhibition Art Post-Internet at Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing (2014) and edited the publication Art Post-Internet: INFORMATION/DATA. A regular public speaker, Archey has recently participated on panels at the University of Chicago, Institute of Contemporary Arts London, Museum of Modern Art New York and MoMA PS1. Previously, she worked as Curator-in-Residence at Abrons Arts Center (2012-2013) and Editor-at-Large of Rhizome at the New Museum.

Archey and the Stedelijk

In her new role at the Stedelijk, Archey will strengthen Stedelijk’s presentation and holdings of time-based media, which encompass digital media, performance, dance and sound art. She will integrate time-based media into temporary exhibitions, collection displays, events, collaborations, and co-productions.

"Karen Archey not only has extensive international experience as a curator, writer and lecturer on new media and performance art, but also a personal view of the meaning of contemporary art in society and in the museum. With Archey we welcome an internationally renowned and inspiring curator to our team; a new voice." ­­­–Bart van der Heide, Head of Curators & Research.

“It is an honor to work alongside Director Beatrix Ruf and Head of Curators & Research Bart van der Heide–two curatorial visionaries whose work I’ve admired for years. My arrival at Stedelijk has been marked by the generousness and warmth of my new colleagues, I couldn’t be happier to join them at this world-class institution that has such a unique respect for time-based arts.” –Karen Archey, Curator of Contemporary Art, Time-based Media.

First projects for the Stedelijk

Archey will curate the first museum solo exhibition of artist Stefan Tcherepnin opening in October 2017. Continuing Stedelijk's engagement with artists who cross over into music and sound, Tcherepnin is also a musician, studying composition at the renowned Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Tcherepnin has also worked extensively with sound artist Maryanne Amacher, whose archive Stedelijk presented in collaboration with Sonic Acts in 2017.

Archey is also responsible for the Gemeentelijke Kunstaankopen 2018; the first municipal acquisition exhibition dedicated to time-based art at Stedelijk. Archey will also develop Stedelijk’s burgeoning media collection, which was spearheaded with the institution’s 2016 joint acquisition of digital work with Museum of the Image, now the Stedelijk Museum Breda.

Note to the editor

For further information please contact the Press Office of the Stedelijk Museum, 020 5732 660/ 662 or pressoffice@stedelijk.nl