ABSTRACT
This chapter explores ethnographic case studies of museums in Latin America and Europe that have transformed traditional curatorial practices to become community-responsive and creative institutions aimed at fostering social improvement, social justice, and inclusion. It centres on “managerial curatorship,” a model in which professional project managers take on curatorial tasks, such as exhibition-making, to promote institutional openness and public engagement. Using in-person interviews, participant observation, and approaches in systems thinking and sociological models to organisational theory, the chapter shows how managerial curatorship enables an organic, team-based network model for managing museum and heritage projects driven by creativity and social impact. The model also facilitates the sharing and exchange of knowledge and expertise internally and with communities, moving away from compartmentalised, hierarchical systems of curatorial authority. This enables renegotiated power arrangements that help cultural heritage organisations position themselves within broader stakeholder networks, ensuring sustained collaboration and empowerment. The chapter also highlights a renewed trend in the museum sector towards hiring generalist profiles that bring complementary and necessary new skill sets that enable institutions to better engage their communities.
