90709 - Curating the Contemporary

Learning outcomes

Students acquire knowledge of the history of exhibitions in order to discern and evaluate the different specificities of the artistic and curatorial role, as well as to deepen the lines of research emerged internationally in recent years. In particular, they acquire the coordinates to analyse, from a historical and artistic point of view, recurring and major museum exhibitions. Furthermore, they learn the methodology to detect, historically locate and critically evaluate the major issues related to the organization and curatorship of art exhibitions. This knowledge benefits the students in developing their individual research.

Course contents

The course investigates contemporary art exhibition practices within the framework of globalization. Contemporary curatorial approaches will be discussed from multiple perspectives, considering context, theories, methodologies, art production and circulation, as well as the art market. Throughout the course, we will explore specific exhibition case studies and the processes that have influenced the curating of contemporary art in a globalized world. The lessons are divided in thematic subjects to facilitate in-depth discussions of specific case studies, aiming for a wide-ranging perspective that includes different regions of the world.

The initial part of the course focuses on understanding the role of exhibitions within the broader context of contemporary art infrastructures. Various approaches will be employed to untangle current configurations, with particular attention given to art large-scale exhibitions such as biennials, which have significantly shaped global curatorial practices. The second part examines how global narratives are articulated from specific viewpoints, localizing discourses and voices. The aim is to showcase the plurality of approaches, moving from close readings of particular case studies to more critical considerations of representation, ultimately investigating a mobile and fragile mapping of the world.

The final group of lessons expands beyond the epistemology of global contemporary art, moving into a more complex framework that considers notions of being and sharing in the present while encompassing both close and distant contexts. Consequently, this section will address ecological discourses, as well as the politics of the body and the concept of togetherness.

Lessons will be addressed the following topics:

• Exhibitions and the System of Contemporary Art
• Biennials, Discursivity and Value
• Framing the Global
• Decolonizing Practices and Revisiting Histories
• Chinese Contemporary Art
• Africa and the Diaspora
• Latin America and the Caribbean
• Global South
• The Rise of the Middle East
• Curating the Market
• Body Politics
• New Ecologies
• Indigenous Voices
• Activism and Social Practices

Readings/Bibliography

The readings will be available for download as teaching materials from the "Virtuale" page.

The bibliography includes a selection of texts from the catalogs of the main exhibitions that will be discussed in class, as well as articles from academic and specialized magazines, and books on relevant topics. Below is a sample list of the volumes from which the readings are selected:

Abraham, Tanya (ed), “REDEFINE: Curatorial and Artistic Practices in the South East”, ONCurating, Issue 59/February 2025.

Barbanti, Roberto and Isabelle Ginot, Makis Solomos, Cécile Sorin (eds), Arts, Ecologies, Transitions Constructing a Common Vocabulary, Routledge, 2024

Belting Hans, et al, Global Studies, Mapping Contemporary Art and Culture, Hatje Cantz, 2011

Buchholz Larissa, The Global Rules of Art, Princeton University Press, 2022

Chiu Melissa and Benjamin Genocchio (eds), Contemporary Art in Asia: A Critical Reader, The MIT Press, 2011.

Choy, Bo, Charles Esche, David Morris and Lucy Steeds (eds), Art and its Worlds, Afterall, 2021.

Gardner Anthony and Charles Green, Biennials, Triennials and Documenta, Wiley-Blackwell 2016

Greenberg Reesa, Bruce W. Ferguson and Sandy Nairne (eds). Thinking About Exhibitions, London and New York: Routledge, 1996

Dimitrikaki, Angela and Lara Perry (eds), Politics in a Glass Case: Feminism, Exhibition Cultures and Curatorial Transgressions, Liverpool University Press, 2013

Filipovic Elena, Marieke van Hal, Solveig Ovstebo (eds). The Biennial Reader, Hatje Cantz, 2010

Harris, Jonathan (ed), Globalization and Contemporary Art, Wiley-Blackwell 2011

Kolb, Ronald, Shwetal Patel, Dorothee Richter (eds) “Contemporary Art Biennales – Our Hegemonic Machines in Times of Emergency”, ONCurating, Issue 46 /June 2020

Kompatsiaris, Panos, Curation in the Age of Platform Capitalism, Routledge, 2024

Kumar Dhiraj, Political Ecology of Everyday Resistance and State Building, Routledge, 2025

O’Neill, Paul, Simon Sheikh, Lucy Steeds, Mick Wilson (eds), Curating after the Global: Roadmaps for the Present, The MIT Press, 2019

Ricci, Clarissa, Contemporary Art Infrastructures. The Politics of Exhibitions and the Management of Value, Mimesis International 2025 (forthcoming)

Salemink Oscar, et al (eds), Global Art in Local Art Worlds, Routledge, 2023

Smith, Terry, Curating the Complex & The Open Strike, Stenberg Press, 2021

Steeds, Lucy (ed), Exhibition, Documents on Contemporary Art, The MIT Press, 2014

Ugochikwu-Smooth C. Nzewi and Thomas Fillitz (eds), The Biennale of Dakar and the Making of Contemporary African Art, Routledge, 2021

Von Bismarck, Beatrice, The Curatorial Condition, Stenberg Press, 2022

Non-attending students

Non-attending students are highly encouraged to contact the teacher well before the exam.

Non-attending students will need to study:

• The same list of readings of attending students which can be downloaded from "Virtuale"
• Write a paper about one of the exhibitions discussed in class (list available on "Virtuale")
• Read entirely the following volumes: Gardner Anthony and Charles Green, Biennials, Triennials and Documenta, Wiley-Blackwell 2016; Paul O'Neill, The Culture of Curating and the Curating of Culture(s), The MIT Press, 2012; Ricci, Clarissa, Contemporary Art Infrastructures. The Politics of Exhibitions and the Management of Value, Mimesis International 2025.

Teaching methods

The course will combine lectures with a seminar-style approach, flipped classroom techniques and project-based learning. Students are encouraged to play and active role within the course, through questions, comments and observations related to the lesson topics.

Assessment methods

After the oral exam students will be assigned a grade based on the paper presentation (50%) and the final oral exam (50%).

 

Paper presentation (25%+25%)

PPT: At the beginning of the course, each student or group of students will be assigned to investigate an exhibition. They will present their findings in class using a PowerPoint presentation, which will then be made available to all students.

Paper: Two days before the exam, students are required to submit a final assignment in which they critically discuss the exhibitions in relation to the given readings. Further details about the final assignment will be given at the start of the course.

Oral exam (50%)

Student will be required to demonstrate an appropriate knowledge of the bibliography specified in the syllabus.

It will be graded as excellent the performance of those students demonstrating to be able to thoroughly analyze the exhibitions and the texts, and to put them into an organic view of the topics discussed during the course. The proper use of the specific language during the examination will be also essential.

It will be graded as discrete the performance of those students with mostly mnemonic knowledge, no in-depth analysis capabilities and a correct, but not always appropriate, language of the recommended texts.

It will be graded as barely sufficient the performance of those students with approximate knowledge, superficial understanding, poor analytical capabilities and a not always appropriate language.

It will be graded as insufficient the performance of those students with learning gaps, inappropriate language, no orientation within the recommended bibliography.

 

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities

It is necessary to contact the relevant University office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) with ample time in advance: the office will propose some adjustments, which must in any case be submitted 15 days in advance to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of these in relation to the teaching objectives.

Teaching tools

Powerpoints; Videos; Online resources.

Office hours

See the website of Clarissa Ricci