Hello, I am Nina Folkersma (1969, Buitenpost) and I’m an independent curator and art critic, based in Amsterdam.
After graduating with honors in Art History from the University of Amsterdam, I completed the Curatorial Programme of De Appel in 1996. Since then I have worked both as an independent and employed curator in a number of different contexts.
In 1997, I stayed in Johannesburg (South Africa) for 3 months where I served as an assistant to the Artistic Director Okwui Enwezor and his co-curators at the 2nd Johannesburg Biennale. Two years later, I coordinated a comprehensive seminar together with Okwui Enwezor for the National Museum of Ethnology in Leiden.
In 2003, I initiated a new project space in Amsterdam, called Quarantine Series, a small-scale institution that presented a dynamic and internationally oriented programme of solo exhibitions, music performances, screenings and debates. Added element to the programme was the creative use of the website and invitations as autonomous platforms for graphic designers and sound artists.
In 2006, I moved to Ghent (Belgium) to work as a guest curator for 3 years at the S.M.A.K., Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst. Apart from developing an international exhibition project about ornament, craftsmanship and critical thinking, I also curated solo shows of Jesper Just, Daria Martin and Victor Alimpiev, and generally acted as an international ‘ambassador’ for the museum.
In 2010, I was appointed as the Artistic Director of the 3rd international Madness & Arts Festival, a multi-disciplinary festival about art and psychiatry that took place in Haarlem, The Netherlands.
Next to my curatorial experience, I have a curriculum as an art critic and editor. I regularly contribute to Metropolis M – the leading Dutch magazine on contemporary art, of which I was also an editor for many years – and other art magazine and catalogues.
At the moment I am a regular tutor at the Design Department of the Sandberg Instituut Amsterdam, a member of the advice committee of the Kunst Noord/Zuidlijn and the Ramses Shaffy Art Project in Amsterdam, and the chair of the board of ArtTable Nederland.
I live in Amsterdam with my husband Eric Wie, our son Romer (5) and daughter Renée (14).