Art's Future: From White Cube to Learning Spaces

Anna Detheridge argues that contemporary art must embrace the formless amid ecological transition. While art has evolved into experiential spaces for over 50 years, conventional blockbuster exhibitions and fairs still dominate. Institutions like Tate Modern and Centre Pompidou have shifted from spectacle to focused contemporary research. The Museumsquartier in Vienna, opened in 2001 with a Vanessa Beecroft performance, now grapples with mass tourism. The white cube persists, critiqued by Brian Doherty in Artforum in 1976. Detheridge points to CERN director Fabiola Gianotti, who described a new Renzo Piano-designed space as a 'learning place' not a museum, challenging traditional models. Documenta 11 (2002) curated by Okwui Enwezor with a global team marked a radical shift, incorporating postcolonial perspectives. The 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale, curated by Lesley Lokko, emphasized relational capacities and African artistic production as infrastructure based on maternity. Detheridge calls for embracing the unknown and adapting to change with intelligence and care.