Ying-Hsuan Tai

"MFA Curating at Goldsmiths had always been my first choice of masters programme. My former tutor had graduated from the course a few years before me and she had shared her experiences. Our programme and Goldsmiths itself offered an environment to explore contemporary art and rethink how we can work within the arts in different ways.

I was particularly pleased with how the course shed light on conducting independent work and trained us as independent curators. We learned from our own research projects, worked collaboratively with our peers during workshops, and also learnt through the organic conversations we had both on and off campus. We were encouraged to collaborate with different types of institutions and work closely with artists, which amplified the core concept of the course. 

During the two-year programme we never stopped rethinking the definition of 'Curating.' Instead of a noun we limit ourselves to achieving, or a verb that we action, we explored how curating is an open and equivocal term that continues to be redefined, expanding the meaning through our own methodologies. This reflection has had a huge impact on my thinking and practice, from curatorial projects to my current role.

Since graduating I have written for art magazines and museum journals. My articles have been published in the museum journal of Taiwan Fine Arts Museum and the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts Magazine in Taiwan, and in Art Forum China. I am a regular contributor to The Artist magazine and cultural newspaper The Affairs. Recently, I was appointed as an editor and writer for Taipei Dangdai art fair's online editorial platform. Currently I am working at White Cube gallery in London, supporting our Asia team on sales and the regional programme. Regarding my curatorial practice, my recent projects include 'Create Syria: A Future Constellation' in 2016, a joint project collaborating with International Alert, the British Council, and Ettijahat - Independent Culture; and 'The Xenophobia of Time?,' 2017, an exhibition featuring four artists exploring the pertinent issues of migration and its link to temporality, at Clerkenwell Gallery in London. I also worked with the art and humanitarian organisation Between Borders as their curator from 2016 to 2017, and have given public talks at BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Arts and University College London.

Current Goldsmiths MFA Curating sutdents should cultivate the relationships they make with people they meet during their studies. Try and spend as much time as you can with your colleagues and fellow students as you can learn from them not only while on the course, but also after graduating. Spending time with Fine Art students in the Art Department is also really valuable as you are so close to artists which helps to understand their practice. After graduating, do remember your true beliefs and your initial motivation for wanting to work in the arts. Keeping that in mind will lead you to the road that you are aiming to reach."