Christian Caliandro on Art's Paradigm Shift Beyond the Art World

Christian Caliandro, an art historian and professor at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze, argues that the pandemic has exposed the crisis of contemporary art's traditional context—institutions, fairs, markets—which he calls the 'art world.' Drawing on Donna Haraway's concept of the 'carrier bag theory of narrative' from Ursula K. Le Guin, Caliandro advocates for a shift from a hierarchical, heroic model to a horizontal, inclusive one where artworks are co-creators with audiences. He contends that the suspension of normal art-world operations allows for a focus on 'openness' and 'availability' to the unexpected, challenging the neoliberal, patriarchal structures that have shaped art production and reception. Caliandro references a conversation between J. J. Charlesworth and Liam Gillick in ArtReview (29 September 2020) questioning whether artists should declare the current system obsolete. The article is part of Caliandro's 'Fase Tre' series on Artribune, exploring the relationship between art and context during the pandemic.