Curator's have long been a forgotten cog in the gallery machine - essential but hardly noticed. Jon Morse takes a closer look at this quiet, unassuming, occupancy.

The traditional view of the curator is one of a specialist, a researcher, and one whose main concern is to share that fountain of knowledge with the art world and the public. Yet things have moved on. It is no longer enough to arrange art works in a space and have a few polished facts at hand.

Since the bottom fell out of the art market - and with it the end (temporary or otherwise) of overinflated prices for historically unproven artists - galleries and institutions are walking on a tightrope. As purse strings were hastily tightened and galleries were closing up shop, the role of the curator expanded out of necessity; out of survival.

Understanding what makes a good work of art just isn't enough anymore. Acute awareness of the market has become essential. The market was, and still is, driving institutions and the curator must understand those trends in order to keep apace.

The L'Equipement des Arts gallery, 17 Seymour Place, London

Clearly this has always been the case to some degree but not too long ago buyers and collectors were far more flippant with their dosh. Plenty of free wine and approving nods and 'mmmms' was enough to encourage fingers to reach into pockets and take a punt on an unknown artist, a new direction. Now that those same fingers are hesitating; the curator cannot.

Stiffer competition and cautious buyers means that the success of a show can secure its short term future - failure could mean it is its last. Which way the iron falls rests on the shoulders of the orchestrator of the operation - the curator.

Yet aside from a good grasp of the market, this curator's role has developed in other ways. Marcel Duchamp claimed that the artist only provided the raw materials, that for a work of art there had to be an audience to complete it. Here then, is another imperative skill of the modern curator.

Today’s art works can be increasingly abstract and inaccessible. A successful curator - not just for their gallery but influential in a wider context of the art world - has to be creative within the role. This creativity can manifest itself in narratives that grab the attention of the public and of course, the artists. The most significant narratives pose the most intriguing questions.

But not only must the curator bridge the gap between artist and public in terms of the concept of a piece, but the media within which these concepts exist is also constantly changing. It's not about wall-hanging anymore. Video imagery and complex installations are taking up more and more gallery space. Guiding the public through such complex spaces is an art form in itself. And guidance is exactly what is in demand at the moment.