CUE’s Art Critic Mentorship Program (ACMP) pairs emerging writers with art critic mentors to produce original long-form critical essays about the work of artists exhibiting at CUE's gallery space. The program is open to writers of any age in the early stages of their careers who meet the eligibility guidelines outlined below. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis; selected writers will be notified of their acceptance during the planning process for each exhibition.

Essays commissioned through the program are published by CUE in print exhibition catalogues distributed at the gallery for each exhibition and are also made available and promoted online on CUE’s website and social media. Writers receive an honorarium of $600 for their participation, along with editorial support from their mentor and CUE’s staff.

To read past essays, browse the archive on our website.

ELIGIBILITY:

The Art Critic Mentorship Program is open to emerging writers of any age and any educational background who:

• Have a demonstrated art and/or critical writing practice and an interest in contemporary art
• Are interested in and open to receiving mentorship and feedback from an established art critic appointed by CUE, as well as editorial support from CUE’s staff
• Do not regularly write reviews or essays for a mainstream arts publication (i.e. Artforum, Art in America, Frieze, etc.)
• Have not published a book or are not currently under contract for a book with a large commercial publisher (self-published books, short chapbooks, and publications by small or independent printers are acceptable)
• Have less than three years of experience as an editorial or staff writer at an arts publication (if applicable; this type of experience is not necessary)

APPLICATION MATERIALS:

• Two writing samples (maximum of 10 pages total)
  • The strongest samples are reviews, blog entries, short essays, and short-form writing. These may be published or unpublished texts.
  • Writing samples must be contemporary and related to visual art (no dance, literature, podcast/radio journalism, or commercial/feature film analysis).
  • Please do not submit school papers, research papers, dissertations, exhibition proposals/summaries, and artwork wall labels as writing samples.
• A current CV containing relevant experience (maximum of 4 pages)

If you are unsure about your eligibility or have any other questions about the program, please email us at opencall@cueartfoundation.org.