My curatorial practice positions the exhibition as a pedagogical site—an environment structured not only to present objects, but to generate inquiry, relation, and meaning. I approach curating as a form of world-building: a process of organizing encounters among artworks, histories, and audiences that invites critical reflection on how knowledge is produced, circulated, and felt.
Each project is conceived as a curriculum. Exhibitions function as multimodal and embodied learning environments in which objects, images, texts, and spatial arrangements operate as forms of knowledge. By placing works in relation across geographies, temporalities, and disciplines, I examine how meaning emerges through juxtaposition, tension, and dialogue. This approach draws on object-based learning and arts-based research, extending curatorial practice beyond display toward inquiry.
Central to my work is the belief that audiences are not passive viewers, but co-constructors of meaning. I design exhibitions that invite participation, interpretation, and critical engagement—foregrounding the social and relational dimensions of looking. In this way, curatorial practice becomes a collaborative process, one that challenges dominant narratives while making space for underrepresented and historically marginalized perspectives.
My work is shaped by an interdisciplinary framework grounded in Black studies, critical pedagogy, and feminist thought. These fields inform my commitment to examining how power operates within visual culture and cultural institutions, and how exhibitions can intervene in those structures. I am particularly interested in how artistic practices function as sites of knowledge production—how artists theorize, archive, and reimagine the world through creative and aesthetic praxes.
The relationship between curator and educator is foundational to my approach. Both roles involve guiding encounters with complex ideas and fostering conditions for critical reflection. As such, I understand curating as an extension of teaching: a practice that structures experiences, poses questions, and opens space for multiple ways of knowing.
My academic training across art history, curatorial practice, and interdisciplinary studies—including work at Columbia University, The Graduate Center, and New York University—has informed this approach, enabling me to integrate critical theory with practice. Across institutional and independent projects, I remain committed to developing exhibitions that are intellectually rigorous, socially responsive, and pedagogically generative.
During my time in the program, I conducted comprehensive research on institutional materials and social-cultural archiving methods, which informed my approach to exhibition planning, collection development, and gallery presentations. I also actively participated in a study day with curators from the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) in Boston, where we explored curatorial strategies behind the “Hear Me Now” exhibit, comparing curatorial approaches between institutions.
Additionally, I crafted an art acquisition proposal report for the permanent collection, along with a proposed exhibition and programming, aimed at contextualizing diverse artistic voices and celebrating the cultural significance of the artwork.
I further deepened my curatorial perspective by attending study days at the Leonard A. Lauder Research Center for Modern Art, the Picasso Celebration Workshop for Graduate Students, and sessions on the Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism led by Denise Murrell
Jacqueline’s research focuses on the intersections of arts, education, and culture. She explores how arts-based methodologies can enhance learning and foster a deeper understanding of diverse cultural perspectives. Her research interests cut across interdisciplinary studies, critical pedagogies, arts-based curriculum studies, and African diasporic arts.