This fall, Josephine Zarkovich begins her role as the curator at the Linfield Gallery.

Being an art curator is like being an agent to a celebrity but instead of actors, her clientele consists of artists and precious works of art. She has the power to decide what is displayed in the art gallery and how it will be shown.

“As a curator, my process begins by looking. Lots and lots of looking,” said Zarkovich, “I get out and see as many shows as possible and make appointments to do studio visits with artists, even when I don’t have a clear idea when, or even if, I will be able to show their work.”

She explained that her job is about “building relationships with artists … keeping track of how their work is progressing, and then inviting them to exhibit their work when it fits with the programming goals of the institution.”

Like any other job, being an art curator has its trials and tribulations.

“The most rewarding part of being a curator is being able to help artists achieve ambitious projects and then share their work with new audiences. The most challenging part of the job is finding the resources necessary to help make that happen,” explained Zarkovich.

“The best example of this way of working from my own career, was the exhibition ‘In Passing,’ a solo exhibition by San Francisco Bay Area artist Chris Fraser at Disjecta Contemporary Art Center.”

“After I saw the scale and architecture of Disjeca’s exhibition space, I knew his monumental light installations would be a perfect fit.”

She is excited to be a part of the Linfield family and stated, “I strongly believe that educationally affiliated galleries are the most important art spaces in the U.S. They represent an opportunity to show challenging, risk-taking art in a context outside of the monetary structure of the commercial galleries or the box office driven concerns of the large museums.”

Zarkovich explained that she was drawn to the position because “[the] Linfield Gallery has a history of staging exhibitions that take advantage of this unique position. I’m excited to continue that tradition while also adding my own perspective.”

Zarkovich’s goal for Linfield Gallery is to “organize high quality exhibitions that are relevant both to the Linfield community and the broader art world. I hope to use the space as a laboratory to help inspire artists to push their practice in new and interesting ways.”

The thing that drew Zarkovich to art in the beginning was, “The way it challenges my assumptions and can alter the way I view the world.”