International Journal of Education & the Arts

Citation: Scardi, G. (2024). Curating as Caring at the Heart of Society. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 25(si1.18). http://doi.org/10.26209/ijea25si1.18

This essay argues that when art is considered to be relevant as a shared resource, then curating can be perceived as a meaningful way of taking care of the present in its perpetual transformation; a stimulus to, and a support in engaging with the questions of the era.

This potential becomes even more obvious when an artistic intervention is rooted in local communities. Curating projects strongly tied to specific situations means giving up any pre-established protocol and formula, and venturing with courage and with a radical care into the experience, always confronting with the uniqueness of the situation. This requires attention, concern, rigor, and a thorough commitment to every aspect of the project, to the process and to everyone who is involved in it. As someone involved in contemporary art and interested in a socially-centred way of curating, I trace the long-time research and curatorial trajectory of a project that I consider paradigmatic, The Magic Mountain, by Micol Roubini.