To understand up close the mestiere of the curator, we interviewed Tiziano Tancredi, a contemporary art curator interested in the anthropological, sociological, and architectural relationships that visual arts establish with public space.
The interview is available in italiano, English, and French, by clicking on the corresponding flags in the main menu of the site.
Tiziano, what was the decisive moment that led you to pursue a career as an art curator?
Often in life, it is the encounters with people that open your mind, leading you towards scenarios not easily foreseeable or even remotely imaginable before. Especially during a university education in Art History, where you feel a bit lost but at the same time inside an àpeiron, a kind of multiverse where anything can happen. This is why I remember the decisive moment with precision.
It coincides with the meeting, thanks to the artist dear mutual friend Diego Miguel Mirabella, with the curator, journalist, and art expert Roberto D’Onorio. With Roberto, I had the opportunity to collaborate on the project Nuda Proprietà within that important hub of knowledge and sharing, personally a life gym, which was the Rialto Sant’Ambrogio of Rome.
How would you describe your approach to curating? What are the principles that guide your work?
I can tell you that from the beginning of my journey, curating has always been closely linked with writing. Writing words that on one hand could clarify the point of view of an* artist* on display and the context in which their research is placed, and on the other hand help to reverberate and multiply its meaning in light of new interpretations.
This approach is inextricably linked to my training as an art historian: the greatest lesson I learned from my three-year and master’s university course at Sapienza University of Rome was certainly the ability to draw from a reservoir of references, relating them to what I saw in the contemporary world.
Continuing on the path, I realized that the theoretical activity of writing was just one of the parts that make up the curatorial planning of an exhibition, and that it especially includes bureaucratic, logistical, and organizational aspects.
How do you identify new artists to include in the exhibitions you curate?
If you mean in what way, I won’t keep it a secret, also because it might be the secret of Pulcinella, in saying that certainly Instagram plays a fundamental role in following the activities of artists* already known* but also in the knowledge and discovery of new ones*. There exists, every now and then we forget, the very valid and evergreen offline option.
In an exhibition that can be in an artist run space, in a gallery, in a foundation, or in a museum, I see works that strike me, and therefore I go to delve into who created them. In one word, like many colleagues, I do research.
More generally, I am stimulated by the discovery of new emerging talents, in which I can recognize value that does not necessarily have to align with my previous interests. They could be the spark, the final piece for completing a project puzzle or for creating a new one ex nihilo.
How important do you consider it that the exhibited works reflect the challenges and issues of contemporary society?
Certainly, the works of artists* that address and deal with the major crucial issues concerning everyone, such as climate change, gender equality, or digital transition, are of primary importance as they mirror the social, cultural, anthropological, and political challenges of our era. I do not exclude, in fact, I am equally interested in less popular themes that are more tailored to a less considerable niche of the population.
To give a closer example, in 2023 I wrote a critical text titled La disperazione è una forma superiore di solitudine. Per ora, noi la chiameremo “trap” for the solo exhibition NO CAP by plurale at ON/OFF in Milan, in addition to writing history and texts for the graphic novel Di Barona e di Trap which was included in the book SNITCH. Dentro la trap edited by Alessio Vigni and plurale, Psicogeografici Editore, Rome.
In this phase of their research journey, they are interested in discussing the issues related to the influence of trap aesthetics on generation z, of which they are a part.
What has been the most significant collaboration of your career, and why?
I have no doubts: the most significant collaboration of my career was definitely the one with the Sindacato Pensionati Italiani della CGIL, thanks to the call from Lorenzo Rossi Doria, which allowed me to realize the collective exhibition “Il Personale è Politico | Il Politico è Personale” with the artists Federica Di Pietrantonio, Verdiana Bove, Guerilla Spam, and Collettivo FX, which I curated on the occasion of their XXI national congress at Fiera di Verona, in 2023.
On that occasion, I felt supported from start to finish regarding the idea of the exhibition I had in mind, without practically ever having to compromise. It was a win-win for everyone, including the artists, who saw some of the works exhibited in the show acquired into the Spi-CGIL collection.
What differences do you notice in the way art is perceived and presented in international contexts compared to the Italian one?
I can’t make a general statement about perception but rather focus on the countries I am more familiar with. In France, and particularly in Paris, I lived for 4 years between 2019 and 2023, working at the Bourse de Commerce and the Galerie Valeria Cetraro. Compared to Italy, I am convinced that there is a greater professionalization of the artist’s role there, as well as a growing number of protections as they are affiliated with the specific social regime for artistes-auteurs.
The art workers in Italy are working hard to try to bridge the gap between abroad and our country in this sense. In France, there is also a widespread support activity for the contemporary art system, which is called FRAC, the Fonds régional d’art contemporain (Regional Funds for Contemporary Art). In Italy, although progress has been made with the increase in calls from the Direzione Generale Creatività Contemporanea, it does not seem to me that such organic results have been achieved.
How are digital technologies influencing the role of the curator?
Digital technologies are profoundly influencing the role of the curator, expanding their capabilities and changing the way art and culture are presented and experienced. Here are some of the main aspects:
• Access and global dissemination: Digital platforms allow curators to reach a global audience. Virtual exhibitions and online content, such as videos, high-resolution images, and interactive tours, enable the breaking down of geographical and temporal barriers, expanding access to art.
• New modes of curatorship: Curatorship is no longer limited to the management of physical exhibitions. Curators are now called to design interactive and immersive experiences, such as digital installations, augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality (VR), which engage the public in innovative ways.
• Digital preservation: Technologies offer new solutions for the preservation of works, both physical and digital. The digital archiving of artworks and documents allows for more lasting and accessible preservation, but also new challenges concerning the protection of rights and the management of information.
• Data analysis and customization: Curators can use data analysis tools to better understand the behavior and interests of the audience. This allows for the creation of personalized experiences and the adaptation of exhibitions based on visitors’ preferences.
• Collaborations and accessibility: Digital technologies promote collaboration among curators, artists, and institutions from all over the world. Furthermore, thanks to digital accessibility tools, such as subtitles, audioguides, and automatic translations, exhibitions become more inclusive.
• Evolution of the concept of “exhibition space”: The physical environment of the gallery or museum is only one of the multiple spaces in which curatorial practices develop today. Curators explore new modes of interaction with the public, including through social platforms, websites, and apps, where curating can occur in real-time and remotely.
In summary, le tecnologie digitali stanno arricchendo e moltiplicando le possibilità per i curatori, ampliando i confini tradizionali del ruolo, sia nella gestione delle opere che nell’interazione con il pubblico.
For example, asking chatgp to answer this question. Here, however, is mine:
The ever-increasing digitization of contemporaneity, which I mentioned in a previous response as the “transition to digital,” has a decisive impact on society and, conversely, also on art, its enjoyment, and its production. As a curator living in this era defined by the information and knowledge society, I cannot help but look with interest at the evolution and repercussions this has on the research of contemporary artists*.
Federica Di Pietrantonio, in my opinion one of the most interesting artists on the Italian scene, has made the points of contact and discrimination between reality and that experienced through processes of identification and representation in simulated/augmented/virtual realities the fulcrum of her research.
What is, in your opinion, the ideal relationship between curation and the art market?
I believe that a good curator can and should also be a good art advisor. Not for abstract reasons, but because over the course of their study or work experience, they should have developed this skill among the arrows in their quiver.
If you have done your job well, if you have presented and defended with a wealth of details and strength of arguments the work of an* artist*, because you believe in it personally, the sale, whether to a private collector, a foundation, or a museum, should be the most normal, certainly the most desirable, conclusion of this process. Obviously, the more a work of art intersects the tastes of the buyer, the more likely the acquisition is.
What suggestions would you give to someone who wishes to pursue the profession of art curator?
To be curious. To dive in and perhaps make mistakes but with an added awareness. To travel a lot and to meet as many people as possible. To try to collaborate in a healthy way with people who support your vision and believe that your contribution can be enriching and an exchange for them.
Do not think exclusively about positioning, in search of a phantom and ideal coherence of self-representation at all costs (which does not exist!).
Once you have gained even the slightest position, be generous and share experiences and information with those who are entering this world (smaller than one might think) for the first time. Do not give up at the first failures, but rather persevere, because things, if you want them, will eventually come.
Can you share something about your upcoming projects or exhibitions?
I am quite superstitious and fully embrace the Trapattoni philosophy of not saying cat if you don’t have it in the bag. However, I can anticipate that I am following the project Appartenenza, still ongoing, by the artist Enrico Tuzzi, known as Carne.
Through mediums such as photography, collage, and embroidery, Appartenenza tackles existential questions central to the human being, addressing the theme of identity and contributing to adding pieces to the reconstruction of the historical memory of the Ex-Yugoslavia.
As expert in digital marketing, Amelia began working in the fintech sector in 2014 after writing her thesis on Bitcoin technology. Previously author for several international crypto-related magazines and CMO at Eidoo. She is now the co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Cryptonomist and Econique.
She is also a marketing teacher at Digital Coach in Milan and she published a book about NFTs for the Italian publishing house Mondadori, while she is also helping artists and company to entering in the sector. As advisor, Amelia is also involved in metaverse-related project such as The Nemesis and OVER.
