Neovernacular Art: Affection and Care as Radical Values

In a critical essay on Artribune, Christian Caliandro defines 'neovernacular' art as work that prioritizes affection, empathy, and care over the art system's usual goals of recognition, success, and legitimacy. He argues that truly effective artworks must be 'affectionate'—demonstrating genuine interest in the world and people, warmth, intimacy, and compassion. Such works are deliberately useless within the art market's framework, refusing to reassure or comfort. Instead, they embrace failure, mimic everyday objects and thoughts, and step outside the art world's comfort zone. Caliandro contrasts this with most contemporary art, which he sees as cold, anti-human, and driven by conformity. At the core of neovernacular practice is obsessive care in craftsmanship—a rare quality today, when many objects and texts are made carelessly. This care, combined with affection, represents the survival and evolution of the human, against the extinction promoted by current utilitarian values. The essay references Niccolò dell'Arca's 'Compianto sul Cristo morto' (1463–90) as an example of such affectionate work.