ICI’s Kate Fowle to become Chief Curator at the Garage!

Dasha Zhukova and Kate Fowle at the ICI’s Benefit Gala in November 2012. Photo: Billy Farrell Agency

Wow!! 

Forgive us, but we’re a bit excited. We’ve been following Kate Fowle since she co-founded CCA’s Curatorial Practice program in San Francisco,  before serving as Director of the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, or her most recent post, Director of the Independent Curators’ International, an initiative that links independent curators with institutions across the globe. We’ve long admired her work,  her vision, her unflagging energy and, let’s face it, her strength.

Needless to say, we couldn’t be happier to read today that Kate has been named the new Chief Curator at the Garage in Moscow.  She will be collaborating with the Garage’s International Program Advisor, Hans Ulrich Obrist.

Maybe we should have seen this coming in November when Fowle and Obrist joined forces to honor Garage Founder Dasha Zhukova as this year’s Leo Award. After all, when the Garage opens the doors on its Rem Koolhaas-designed facilities in Gorky Park next year, it will need someone with Fowle’s capabilities, and let’s be honest – there are just not that many out there like Kate. Fowle will remain as Director-at-Large for ICI, while current Deputy Director Renaud Proch will step up into the role of Executive Director.

Kate, we extend our warmest congratulations, and can’t see what you bring to the position, let alone to Moscow!

For those still unacquainted with Fowle’s handiwork, you can find an interview between the always-enjoyable Sarah Douglas and Fowle here on Artinfo. You can also get a sense of Fowle’s faith in the transformative power of good curating in this video interview:

Center Conversations: Interview with Kate Fowle, Independent Curators International from Pew Center for Arts & Heritage on Vimeo.