Female Disruptors: Edith Devaney of MICAS On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry

One of the most difficult things when doing an exhibition of celebrated artists is getting good loans of art works from museums. I remember when I was working on a very ambitious, large international exhibition and I was struggling to get loans and was almost losing heart. A friend and collector sensed my anxiety, took me for a cup of tea, and said that in life the things that seem almost impossible are nearly always the things most worth doing. It always stayed with me, and I did press on and achieved enormous success with that project in the end.

As a part of our series about women who are shaking things up in their industry, we had the pleasure of interviewing Edith Devaney.

Edith Devaney is the artistic director of the Malta International Contemporary Art Space (MICAS), which will open in October 2024 as Malta’s first non-profit contemporary art museum. She is the former curator at the Royal Academy of Arts in London (RA) and former managing director and curator for David Hockney.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?

I was always interested in art and aesthetics, wanting to understand what we were looking at, and how to read or decipher it — be it an exquisite designer dress, arresting architecture or an artistic masterpiece. I wondered for some time about pursuing a career in fashion, but in the end knew the theory of art history was always going to be much more engaging. I studied art history in London and went straight into the museum world.

Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?

With the caveat that disruptive doesn’t need to feel radical or revolutionary — even though it might in fact be just that — and that it is never deliberately aggressive in its approach, I like to think that every art project or exhibition that I have worked on over the years has changed people’s thinking or perception about the artist or the subject covered, and effectively “disrupted” any preconceptions that the viewer might have had.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Once a lender to an exhibition sent the wrong work. It was only during the very fraught installation that we opened the crate and found a work by a completely different artist. It was a shock! But very amusing at the same time.

We all need a little help along the journey. Who have been some of your mentors? Can you share a story about how they made an impact?

I have had no mentors in the formal sense. I felt that I had to make my own way in the art world, though I learned a lot from all the brilliant people I have been lucky enough to work with along the way. It is often conversations with artists, quietly in their studios, that have proved to be the most inspiring. At MICAS, I was fortunate enough to meet sculptor Conrad Shawcross this past fall when he helped to install his works on the museum’s campus as part of its inaugural display. We are also lucky in the art world that galleries and museums offer all of us constant mentoring of sorts. It is often on such visits, while immersing yourself in art, that ideas begin and courage to execute them builds.

In today’s parlance, being disruptive is usually a positive adjective. But is disrupting always good? When do we say the converse, that a system or structure has ‘withstood the test of time’? Can you articulate to our readers when disrupting an industry is positive, and when disrupting an industry is ‘not so positive’? Can you share some examples of what you mean?

This is such interesting territory. Like science and history, art history is built on what happened before. To an extent, we are all — by our writing and curating of art — slowly building up from these foundations. But each culture is different, and we need to constantly go back and not necessarily rejudge works of the past, but recontextualize them for our time. Picasso remains a colossus of modern art — he was such during his lifetime and he will remain so in the future. However, aspects of his life — the manifestations of which can be detected in some of his work — are now under scrutiny and don’t sit as well with us now. Is it disruptive to reinterpret his work from a contemporary perspective? Is it right that we should? What I will say is that to keep an artist’s work relevant, whether they worked in the last century or the 15th century, we need to continue to evaluate their work for the modern audience while also being aware of how it was received during their lifetime. Remember, Picasso himself was seen as an artistic disrupter during his life.

Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.

One of the most difficult things when doing an exhibition of celebrated artists is getting good loans of art works from museums. I remember when I was working on a very ambitious, large international exhibition and I was struggling to get loans and was almost losing heart. A friend and collector sensed my anxiety, took me for a cup of tea, and said that in life the things that seem almost impossible are nearly always the things most worth doing. It always stayed with me, and I did press on and achieved enormous success with that project in the end.

We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?

Absolutely not! The exhibition programme at the upcoming Malta International Contemporary Art Space will give so many opportunities to continue to make positive waves in the global art world, and I look forward to the challenge.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by ‘women disruptors’ that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

My experience has been mixed asI have moved throughout my career. I think it’s easier now than when I first started in terms of general attitude. However, I am very happy to be working with a team of very brilliant and formidable women in Malta. Having children and families has, certainly in the past, been seen as somehow something that should be factored in when assessing a woman’s capacity and ambition. In reality, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Women who have external responsibilities are almost always more focused in the workplace. Wasting time is not an option.

Do you have a book/podcast/talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us?

My study is lined with art books, and they are a constant source of delight and information. It is dangerous to pick one up and start reading, though — before I know it a couple of hours have passed.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

I am passionate about bringing art to as many peoples as possible because I believe it is truly life changing. I would love to make art accessible to all, starting with school children.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

This quote was from a celebrated art writer on how to pitch essays and art lectures: “Never underestimate the intelligence of your audience or overestimate their knowledge.” I have found this to be very useful advice.

How can our readers follow you online?

I’m not on social media, so the best place to follow my work is the MICAS website: www.micas.art.

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!