THE EDEN Curatorial Research Fellowship
2026 Fellows
2026 Open Call
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TWO exceptional curators will be chosen for this fellowship and each fellow will receive a one-time, unrestricted grant of $3,000. The selected fellows will automatically become members of the foundation, with their writing, research, and projects featured on our website and in various marketing channels and printed materials.
Eligibility
This opportunity is open to curators working independently or with institutional affiliations who have a minimum of TWO years of professional experience in curation.
Required Materials
Resume in PDF format
Saved as “lastname_firstname_Resume” (e.g., Jane_Doe_Resume). Include details of your artistic experience and educational background.
Statement of Intent (250 words max)
Explain your motivation for applying for this fellowship.
Cultural Statement (Optional, 250 words max)
This supplemental statement allows you to elaborate on how your work is connected to a specific cultural practice, tradition, or community. You may also share how your curatorial endeavors are influenced by your culturally-specific lived experiences.
Project Proposal (800 words max)
Proposed Exhibition/Project Title
Provide a concise and engaging title that reflects the essence of your project.One-Sentence Proposal Summary
Summarize your project in a single, impactful sentence that captures its core idea.Project Description
Elaborate on your exhibition or project concept, detailing the themes, objectives, and envisioned outcomes.Key Contributors
Include a preliminary list of artists, curators, writers, and other collaborators relevant to your project, along with their roles.Field Relevance
Discuss the significance of your project within the current landscape of the field, including potential contributions to ongoing dialogues or practices.Fellowship Utilization Plan
Outline how you intend to leverage the fellowship to advance your research project, including specific activities or milestones.Timeline and Opportunities
Provide an estimated timeline for project delivery, potential exhibition venues, and opportunities for publication or dissemination of your work.Support and Resources
Identify any additional resources, mentorship, or support you may require to successfully execute your project.
Review Process
The selection will be conducted by an independent jury to ensure fairness and integrity in the award process. Applications are reviewed over the course of two phases:
Phase 1: The jury will conduct an independent review of assigned applications.
Phase 2: The jury will convene to collectively discuss and finalize the selection of award recipients from the applications that advance to this stage.
The jury will assess applications based on the following criteria:
Originality and Innovation: The proposal should demonstrate a unique perspective and innovative approach to curatorial practice. We are looking for projects that push boundaries and offer fresh insights into contemporary issues in art and culture.
Relevance and Impact: The project should address significant themes or questions within the field of contemporary art. Consideration will be given to how the proposed exhibition or research contributes to broader cultural dialogues and its potential impact on audiences and communities.
Feasibility and Planning: The application should clearly outline a realistic timeline and a well-defined plan for executing the project. This includes identifying necessary resources, potential collaborators, and how the fellowship will facilitate the successful realization of the proposed project.
We kindly remind you that the application deadline is 11:59 PM EDT on April 13, 2026. No applications will be accepted after this date. All applicants will receive an automatic email response after completing their application.
Results are expected to be announced by June 15, 2026, and only awarded fellows will receive notifications via email. We appreciate your understanding and ask that you refrain from contacting the office before this date or if you do not receive a notification by then. Thank you!
No application fee required.
2026 Selection Committee
JAVIER RIVERO RAMOS, PhD
Curator at Art Bridges Foundation
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Javier Rivero Ramos, Ph.D., is a curator at Art Bridges Foundation where he works furthering access to American art and energizing the field through collection sharing initiatives, touring exhibitions, and institutional partnerships. He joined Art Bridges Foundation in the fall of 2024 after completing his doctoral work at Princeton University.
Rivero Ramos has curated exhibitions on modern and contemporary artists and has worked in the curatorial department of several museums and institutions in the United States and Mexico. In 2024, Javier co-curated the exhibition Ulises Carrión: Bookworks and Beyond at Princeton University’s Ellen and Leonard Milberg Gallery, the largest US-retrospect on the work of the pioneering Mexican book artist to date. The exhibition was accompanied by a scholarly publication by Princeton University Library and a campus-wide public program that featured scholarly panels, artist-led workshops, and object study sessions. In 2018, Javier co-curated School of Survival: Learning with Juan Downey, an exhibition hosted by Hunter College’s Leubsdorf Gallery devoted to the Chilean artist’s pedagogical practice while a faculty member at that institution in the 1960s. Rivero Ramos has also led several editorial initiatives. In 2020 he edited the first monograph devoted to Raphael Montañez Ortiz and in 2019 he co-edited a volume dedicated to Juan Downey.
J. CABELLE AHN, PhD
Art historian and writer
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J. Cabelle Ahn is a New York–based art historian and writer. Trained as a specialist of early modern French and Dutch art, she holds a PhD from Harvard University and MAs from the Courtauld Institute of Art and Bard Graduate Center. Her writing focuses on in-depth artist interviews and historical contextualizations of trends in contemporary art, including how ultra-contemporary artists draw on the European Old Masters. She has held curatorial and research roles at the Harvard Art Museums, the Morgan Library & Museum, the Cooper Hewitt, and more. Her byline has appeared in The Art Newspaper, Artnet News, Observer, Master Drawings, Journal18 and more, in addition to exhibition catalogues and edited volumes. She is currently the President of the Association of Print Scholars, where she has been an officer since 2019.
2025 Selection Committee
Jessica Zhang
Independent curator, honorary Director of Today Art Museum
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Based in New York and Beijing, Jessica Zhang is an independent curator and a consultant for MondoMostre. She previously served as the Director of Today Art Museum (TAM) and as Director of Asia / Publisher for ArtNet News China at ArtNet. In 2024, she received the Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.
Founded in 2002, TAM is the first not-for-profit private contemporary art museum in China. During her tenure at TAM, Zhang organized over 70 exhibitions, including Gaetano Pesce: Nobody’s Perfect and To Your Eternity—the fourth edition of Future of Today. She also curated A Hidden Genius: Finding Vivian Maier and Environment, Mon Amour—Tong Yixin and Susanne Husky among others. Zhang established the Fondation Choi pour l’art contemporain and founded the artist residency program at TAM. She co-founded the Alliance of Museums in China (AMC) with partners across mainland China.As a guest lecturer and member of the undergraduate thesis defense jury at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, she also serves on the jury for the Art Power 100 and the Porsche x Art021 Young Artist Award. Zhang has delivered lectures at institutions such as Tsinghua University and ADCC and participated in various speaking engagements, including the Museum Directors Forum at GAFA and the Swire Dialogue Series at Art Basel Hong Kong.
She is a graduate of Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and Tufts University.
John Miller
Professor of Art History at Barnard College, Columbia University, artist and writer
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John Miller is an artist and writer based in New York and Berlin. La Magasin in Grenoble, the Kunstverein in Hamburg, the Kunsthalle Zurich, the ICA Miami, the Museum in Bellpark, Kriens, Switzerland, the Schinkel Pavillon in Berlin, the Kunsthalle Bielefeld, and the Kunsthaus Glarus, Switzerland have held retrospective exhibition of his work.
His publications include Mike Kelley: Educational Complex (Afterall Books, 2015), The Ruin of Exchange: Selected Writings, and The Price Club: Selected Writings (1977-1998) (both JRP-Ringier and the Consortium’s Positions series) as well as Reconstructing a Public Sphere (Walther König Verlag, 2018). Miller is a Professor of Professional Practice in Barnard College’s Art History Department.
The Eden Arts Foundation info@theedenartsfoundation.org