The Wall Street Journal publishes an article on Massimiliano Gioni, the youngest curator to direct the Venice Biennale. The author, Ian Volner, gives us an original insight of his practice.
Starting as an outsider — as he defined himself — in his native Italy, Gioni slowly moved towards his rightful place in the art world. One of the turning points in his career was when he met well known artist Maurizio Cattelan while working for Flash Art. Their friendship was followed by a variety of iprojects —the creation of Wrong Gallery as a quasi-mocked art space is only one of them.
Lisa Philips, director of the New Museum, who worked closely with Gioni, said that “he can see the need of an institution from so many different angles, form the position of the artist, of his colleagues, of donors and the general public.”
Gioni first came in contact with modern art at the age of 13, after seeing Lucy Lippard’s book, Pop Art. It was then that he first imposed himself art related questions. Decades from then, he now has to confront a much bigger challenge which comes along with the fame of the Venice Biennale. Following this “rite of passage, I just have to go through it”, says Gioni.