We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jennifer McCabe a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jennifer, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

In many ways beginning a career in the arts is a risk. Without a definitive path, one must chart their own course. What I have learned is that it is important to look for opportunities even when they appear to be risks. I was 34 years old when the first chance to run an institution as director and chief curator came my way. And when it did, people I knew and trusted cautioned me against doing it! You see, the Museum of Craft and Folk Art in San Francisco was in a precarious financial position and the board of directors was considering closing its doors. Yet somehow I understood that if it were in better shape I might not get the chance, so I jumped right in. Although I was only able to stay for five years, we surprised many with how dynamic and alive the museum could be. We invigorated the museum with contemporary artists engaged deeply in material investigations. We commissioned new works, received major grant funding, and even garnered mentions in the national press. I learned countless lessons about working with people, managing ambitious projects, raising money for the arts, and supporting artists. And ten years later I have been able to revisit my time there through an exhibition about the founding artist, Gertrud Parker, that premiers at the Marin Museum of Contemporary Art in January 2024, accompanied by a beautiful publication about how visionary and risk-taking she was.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am currently the Director and Chief Curator at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA) in Scottsdale, AZ, where I have been employed since 2016. Over my 18-year career in the arts, I have maintained an unwavering dedication to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility through an artist-centered approach to curating and a collaborative, non-hierarchical, and responsive management style. I bring this experience, passion, and vision to support and enable SMoCA to evolve as a leader and innovator in the field. I am proud that we received local recognition as the Best Art Museum in the valley (with a population of nearly 5 million).

I began my art career in California, completing a Master of Arts in Art History degree from San Francisco State University, and beginning a role at the multi-disciplinary space, New Langton Arts. This experience has proved foundational in my artist-centered approach to curating. In my current role, I have focused on DEIA measures, through work such as: renewing the mission statement in collaboration with staff and advisory council, introducing a land acknowledgment in the museum, instituting Spanish language translations for gallery didactics, and I am currently working on a gender-free restroom. Over the last five years, 60% of our solo exhibitions featured Latinx or Indigenous artists and 90% featured BIPOC artists.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I am constantly thinking about this…how to best support artists and our creative ecosystem. In my role as director of an art museum, I do this by working with local artists alongside inviting national and international artists for exhibitions and events. In our retail store, we work with creatives locally over other places. Sadly our government does not value investing in the arts as much as it could, but we all appreciate beautiful and creative environments so we all have to do our part. Artists need places to show their work, so I love seeing artwork thoughtfully displayed at a coffee shop or architecture office. Buy things from people you know – or want to know!

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Social justice has always been integral to my worldview. If I weren’t in a creative field I could see myself being a social worker or a lawyer. However, I have found ways to support my beliefs in my creative work by focusing on how to expand the field of art to be more inclusive. This allows me to show up with passion and dedication and to persevere even in the face of adversity.

Image Credits
all photo credits to Claire Warden except for the Phillip K Smith photo to Lance Gerber