Not in order.

10. "Elizabeth Smith [curator, Art Gallery of Ontario]: 'I have learned more and more to trust my instincts about what stirs or moves me as an indicator of what might also have a strong impact on others. Earlier in my career, I would not have had the same kind of confidence about balancing the intellectual and the intuitive.'"

9. "Pigeon Fancier: ...'I have to ask you—and I'm being deliberately vague here—should we celebrate the achievements of great artists who are bad people?'"

8. "Eric Fredericksen [curator, Seattle Waterfront, Western Bridge]: 'I decided years ago that I'd rather work with artists I liked. I figured there were plenty of other curators around who didn't mind working with the nasty ones. But beyond simply wanting to enjoy myself, and contrary to the modernist myth, I do, somewhat embarassedly, believe that the best art is now made by good folks."

7. Pigeon drawings by Sarah McEneaney

6. "Pigeon Fancier: 'Is there anything that curators can do to counter the perception of art as a luxury asset?'"

5. "Glenn Adamson [curator, Victoria and Albert Museum, London]: ...'Walter Benjamin's famous observations about the effects of reproduction continue to be worth considering...I think it's easier and easier for a work of art to function democratically (through replication or display) while still being owned by some fat-cat investor whose politics you might well find revolting.'"

4. Nicholas Frank [curator, Milwaukee]: 'The whole point of the thing, for me, is to keep complexity alive and breathing, resolutely and defiantly..."

3. The sandwiching of Robert Storr's self-important Rules of Order with Jenifer Papararo's anti-individualism and Helen Molesworth's questions.

2. "Helen Molesworth [curator, ICA Boston]: 'Have I adequately thanked and compensated all of the people who have worked to bring a project to fruition?'"

1. "Ralph Rugoff [curator, Hayward Gallery, London]: 'While organizing Psycho Buildings: Artists Take on Architecture...[the artist group Gelitin had] a brilliant idea that would have created a very uncanny atmosphere around the gallery each afternoon as thousands of pigeons began circling the building, awaiting their scheduled dinner. ...While shitting on the museum might have had its ideological points in an artwork, it didn't seem fair to the people who would have to clean it up. So I asked them to come up with another idea...which they did.'"

The book is called Pigeons on the Grass Alas: Contemporary Curators Talk About the Field, published by Pew, and you can get a copy by calling 267-350-4900 or emailing.