Showing-knowing: the exhibition, the student, and the higher education art institution

ABSTRACT The student exhibition is a format and a genre which is both under-theorized and under-historicized. It is not properly contextualized or explored within the field(s) of contemporary art, curation or fine art pedagogy. This paper maps, analyses and discusses the student exhibition in terms of the format, the potential, and the institutional agencies, with reference to the relevant pedagogic literature as seen in relation to the wider field of contemporary art practice, exhibition practice, and curatorial praxis. For this article, the central example of the student exhibition is the degree show. This event is not just the ‘showcase’ for individual students or cohorts, it is the public face of the institution. This is notable because it positions the student exhibition in general and the degree show in particular as a nexus between the vision and reputation of the institution and the individual student’s artistic production and future career.