FOR WHO: For those who want to learn about another version of the professional figure of the art curator.
WHY: tells how the figure of the curator has filtered into mass culture
WHEN: it is a pleasant and light read that flows quickly, to read in breaks it is perfect!
LANGUAGE: Italian
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From looks to playlists, from gourmet menus to singing festivals to even VIP weddings, everything today is "curated by," and the terms "curate," "curator," and related pop up on the lips and resumes of anyone who wants to leverage some specificity and stand out from the crowd. If by now even the most disparate companies have adopted this strategy of extreme content enhancement, it is in the field of art that curators are leading the way. The creators of high-profile group shows and biennials to which they lend their name and face, the various Obrists, Christov-Bakargiev and Gioni obfuscate the work of individual artists by becoming themselves the protagonists of the events they are called upon to lead, torn between the need to intercept public tastes and the mission of shaping a new avant-garde. It is a phenomenon that began in the 1990s and has spread like wildfire, so much so that even museums, once sanctuaries disengaged from the frenetic emergencies of marketing, have jumped on the curators' bandwagon, ready to peddle a pre-masticated enjoyment of their treasures. What has triggered the unstoppable rise of these "guarantors of value" adept at promoting themselves first and foremost, so as to appear indispensable arbiters of taste? How has this figure filtered into mass culture leading to a hyper-professionalization of roles in the art world and a proliferation of new areas of specialization?
David Balzer
FOR WHO: For those who want to learn about another version of the professional figure of the art curator.
WHY: tells how the figure of the curator has filtered into mass culture
WHEN: it is a pleasant and light read that flows quickly, to read in breaks it is perfect!
LANGUAGE: Italian
-
From looks to playlists, from gourmet menus to singing festivals to even VIP weddings, everything today is "curated by," and the terms "curate," "curator," and related pop up on the lips and resumes of anyone who wants to leverage some specificity and stand out from the crowd. If by now even the most disparate companies have adopted this strategy of extreme content enhancement, it is in the field of art that curators are leading the way. The creators of high-profile group shows and biennials to which they lend their name and face, the various Obrists, Christov-Bakargiev and Gioni obfuscate the work of individual artists by becoming themselves the protagonists of the events they are called upon to lead, torn between the need to intercept public tastes and the mission of shaping a new avant-garde. It is a phenomenon that began in the 1990s and has spread like wildfire, so much so that even museums, once sanctuaries disengaged from the frenetic emergencies of marketing, have jumped on the curators' bandwagon, ready to peddle a pre-masticated enjoyment of their treasures. What has triggered the unstoppable rise of these "guarantors of value" adept at promoting themselves first and foremost, so as to appear indispensable arbiters of taste? How has this figure filtered into mass culture leading to a hyper-professionalization of roles in the art world and a proliferation of new areas of specialization?
David Balzer
David Balzer
David Balzer
