Call for Applications: Curator-in-Residence 2026, Western University

Social and Environmental Justice in the Arts

Kelly Greene, Humanity’s Vast Responsibility, 2009, mixed media. Photo: Richard Lawler

Call for Applications: Curator-in-Residence in Social and Environmental Justice in the Arts, Western University

Application Deadline
June 1, 2026

Annual Term for the Residency
Mid-August to mid-May

Residency Stipend
$50,000 total (paid in installments throughout the residency term). Employment benefits are not included with the package.

Key Components of the Residency

• The residency requires the curator to be physically present on campus at least one day per week and sometimes more frequently in order to visit classes or participate in events that may occur outside of scheduled office hours. The residency is intended to involve primarily in-person rather than virtual engagement.
• Hold three hours of weekly office hours on campus to meet with students, staff, faculty or members of the community and offer mentorship.
• Upon invitation, visit classes in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities to discuss themes related to social and environmental justice in the arts.
• Organize and lead at least two public events per semester (i.e. talks, workshops, studio visits, or other programming).
• Pursue curatorial projects related to social and environmental justice in the arts.

How to Apply
Each application should include the following components:

1. Curriculum Vitae including contact information
2. Cover letter that includes a short curator statement
3. Project proposal (maximum 500 words)
4. Community engagement proposal (maximum 250 words)
5. A writing sample from a curatorial, academic, or related project
6. Contact information for 2 references (only the referees of shortlisted candidates will be contacted).

Note: The above documents should be merged into a single PDF

E-mail submission package to: cir@uwo.ca

Application Deadline: June 1, 2026

John Labatt Visual Arts Centre, Western University

The Department of Visual Arts offers programs in Art History, Museum and Curatorial Studies, and Studio Art, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. We have strengths in North and Latin American art and architecture, from the Early Modern to Contemporary periods, Museum and Curatorial Studies, digital media, photography, painting, drawing, printmaking, ceramics, sound, sculpture, and installation. Department facilities include the artLAB Gallery, the Cohen Explorations Lab and Cohen Commons, the Centre for Sustainable Curating, and the Onkwehonwe Research Environment, as well as studio facilities including woodshop, sound studio, printmaking studio, painting studio, dark room, and black box media lab. The Department also supports an Indigenous-Artist-in-Residence opportunity.

Local Context
Western University is located on the traditional territories of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, Lūnaapéewak, and Chonnonton Nations, on lands connected with London Township and Sombra Treaties of 1796 and the Dish with One Spoon Covenant Wampum. With this, we acknowledge and respect the longstanding relationships that Indigenous Nations have to this land, as they are the original caretakers. We acknowledge historical and ongoing injustices that Indigenous Peoples (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) endure in Canada, and we accept responsibility as a public institution to contribute toward revealing and correcting miseducation as well as renewing respectful relationships with Indigenous communities through our teaching, research and community service.

The Department of Visual Arts is located next to the Deshkan Ziibing, also known as the Thames or Antler River. This culturally and ecologically significant river reminds us of our responsibilities to the land and Indigenous Peoples, and offers meaningful grounding and inspiration to many students, staff and faculty.

London has a lively artistic scene, and the Department of Visual Arts collaborates on a regular basis with the McIntosh Gallery also located on campus, Embassy Cultural House, Forest City Gallery, Museum London, and Museum of Ontario Archaeology.

Department of Visual Arts
Western University
John Labatt Visual Arts Centre
London, ON, Canada
519.661.3440
visarts@uwo.ca
www.uwo.ca/visarts

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Image Descriptions:
1. Stylized sculpture of a curled fetus inside a blue globe, connected by an umbilical cord, mounted on a stand against a dark background.
2. Wide interior hallway with a polished concrete floor and white gallery-style walls that are hung with colourful unframed art on either side.