Francesco Urbano Ragazzi
In a world where globalization seems to give way to rising nationalist extremisms, it is urgent to ask: What is the meaning and value of exhibitions promoting national artistic identity? How can we articulate a discourse on a territory’s creative distinctiveness while fostering the intercultural dialogue essential to contemporary democracies? This complex question will be explored by the duo Francesco Urbano Ragazzi during the first Italian Fellowship for Curatorial Research at the American Academy in Rome. Their research takes as its starting point the final text written by Carla Lonzi—a brief essay published in the catalogue of Identité Italienne (Centre Pompidou, Paris, 1981)—in which the feminist philosopher distances herself from the system that Germano Celant’s exhibition represents. During their residency, Francesco Urbano Ragazzi will contextualize Lonzi’s argument within the broader framework of her philosophy. Inspired by her dialogical method, they will also critically examine the role of national exhibitions in contemporary Italy, collaborating with a group of artists living in or coming from the country: Monia Ben Hamouda (2025 Affiliated Artist) Ludovica Carbotta, Liryc Dela Cruz, Tomaso De Luca (2017 Italian Fellow), Michele Gabriele, Beatrice Gibson, Invernomuto (2019 Italian Fellows) Muna Mussie, and Natália Trejbalová. The American Academy in Rome will stand as a cultural embassy, providing a space to articulate the question: How is it possible to think about an Altérité Italienne?
Francesco Urbano Ragazzi is a curatorial duo made of Francesco Ragazzi (Dr. in Philosophy) and Francesco Urbano (Dr. in Visual and Media Studies). Together they have developed an extensive range of production strategies and invented exhibition formats working with pioneers such as Jonas Mekas, Kenneth Goldsmith, Jennifer West, Cheryl Donegan, Haroon Mirza, Pauline Curnier Jardin, Tsai Ming-Liang, and others. The duo was commissioned with curatorial projects for MMCA, Seoul; ISCP, New York City; CERN, Geneva; Bucharest Biennale; Maraya Art Centre, Sharjah; Castello di Rivoli, Turin; Centre d’Art Contemporain Gèneve; La Casa Encendida, Madrid; and Ruya Foundation, Baghdad, among others. In 2012, with the support of the National Ministry of Equal Opportunities, Francesco Urbano Ragazzi curated Io Tu Lui Lei, the first institutional exhibition about the cultural legacy of LGBTQ+ movements in Italy. Between 2017–22, they directed the archive of feminist artist Chiara Fumai, curating her first solo show in the U.S., the first retrospective of her work in Europe, and publishing the first monograph dedicated to her practice. In 2021, the duo coedited FUORI!!! 1971-1974, an anthology focused on the first LGBTQ+ culture magazine in Italian history. In 2022, they directed the XVII Lofoten International Art Festival (LIAF Biennale). Between the end of 2022 and 2024 they curated Jonas Mekas 100! in Italy, the international program celebrating the centenary of the hugely influential Lithuanian filmmaker.