Christian Caliandro on the Posthumous Present and Art as a Wound
Christian Caliandro, an art historian and professor at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze, publishes an essay on Artribune exploring the concept of a 'posthumous present'—a temporal distortion where collective trauma remains unprocessed. He argues that the past, instead of becoming memory, continues to operate within the present, shaping categories, fears, and artistic choices. Caliandro links this to Cory Doctorow's 'enshittification,' suggesting it reflects a deeper cognitive shift beyond digital platform degradation. He observes a rapid simplification of language, akin to Orwell's Newspeak in '1984,' which limits speculative thought and enforces a single interpretation of reality. For Caliandro, art emerges as a subterranean murmur from this wound, speaking beneath a compromised language. The essay references Pasolini's 'Le Ceneri di Gramsci' (1954) and Nine Inch Nails' 'Who Wants to Live Forever?' from the 'TRON: Ares' OST (2025).
Key facts
- Christian Caliandro teaches at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze.
- The essay is published on Artribune.
- Caliandro describes the present as 'posthumous' due to unprocessed collective trauma.
- He cites Cory Doctorow's concept of 'enshittification' as a symptom of cognitive transformation.
- Language simplification is compared to Orwell's Newspeak from '1984'.
- The essay references Pasolini's 'Le Ceneri di Gramsci' (1954).
- Nine Inch Nails' 'Who Wants to Live Forever?' from 'TRON: Ares' OST (2025) is quoted.
- Art is described as a murmur from a wound beneath language.
Entities
Artists
- Christian Caliandro
- Pier Paolo Pasolini
- George Orwell
- Cory Doctorow
Institutions
- Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze
- Artribune
- Mondadori
- Symbola Fondazione per le Qualità italiane
Locations
- Firenze
- Italy