ArtDate 2023 - ARTIFICIO - is a unique cultural event, organized on the occasion of Bergamo and Brescia, Italian Capitals of Culture 2023. The project, realized by the cultural association THE BLANK in collaboration with Palazzo Monti, with the patronage of the Municipality of Bergamo and the Lombardy Region, chooses to structure a shared path that represents the two cities' will to collaborate. The event follows the mission of the Capital of Culture, that is to grow together, by including in its program a great variety of events: the installation INFINITO PRESENTE by Yayoi Kusama at Palazzo della Ragione in Bergamo; the exhibition at Palazzo Monti in Brescia; the GALLERIES TIME dedicated to the inaugurations of exhibitions in the galleries and the opening of a plurality of artists' studios and private collections that are generally inaccessible to the public.
The theme of this edition is artifice, a term around which a series of reflections concerning the thinking and learning capabilities of machines will be carried out. This is a new challenge that fascinates researchers and questions intellectuals: "Is it possible to emulate artistic creativity, considered for centuries to be a human peculiarity?". With the advent of digitisation, human creativity is increasingly mediated by programmes: but now the machine is no longer just a tool, it possesses initiative. ArtDate - ARTIFICIO will open with a series of online appointments whose fruition is made possible to the deaf-mute public thanks to a special subtitling and translation service in LIS (Italian Sign Language).
The 13th edition of ArtDate, a festival of contemporary art and culture, involves the main public and private cultural institutions of the two capitals, as well as artists, galleries, collectors, historical residences and schools. The highlights include the opening of the exhibition Ghostwriting Paul Thek. Time Capsules and Reliquaries, Alessandro Di Pietro's solo exhibition at Palazzo Monti, Brescia; the online interviews with Domenico De Masi (sociologist); Umberta Gnutti Beretta and Francesca Milani (collectors); Gian Antonio Gilli (sociologist); Diana Anselmo (performer and activist); Massimo Minini (gallery owner) and Cristina Fogazzi (founder of Vera Lab and collector); Arturo Galansino (Director of Palazzo Strozzi); Effe Minelli's performance, These Butterflies Came Back from Hell to See You; screenings of videos by Marianna Simnett and Christian Marclay; the extraordinary opening to the public of private collections and artists' studios between Bergamo and Brescia; and the live soundtrack of three films by Maya Deren, in collaboration with Bergamo Film Meeting.
The spaces of ArtDate2023 - ARTIFICIO will be open from Friday 10 to Sunday 26 November, transforming the two cities into two engines of culture for the entire month with a dense program suitable for different audiences that will include talks, performances, readings, and projections focusing on artificiality. The machine that escapes the control of those who designed it is in fact an ancient yet topical theme that will increasingly be at the centre of cultural discussion. On the other hand, the conception of an event dedicated to finding solutions, but also questions, regarding the artificial intelligence represents an important opportunity for the cultural and artistic sector that will surely have a follow-up.
ArtDate 2023
Contemporary art festival
ARTIFICIAL | 13th edition
Bergamo, Brescia
From 10 November to 26 November 2023