New York | Curator’s Talk with Cecilia Alemani, Artistic Director of the 59th Venice Biennale, on “The Milk of Dreams”

The James Howell Foundation and ArtTable present a special curator’s talk with Cecilia Alemani, Artistic Director of the 59th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, on this edition’s theme: “The Milk of Dreams.” Alemani will be in conversation with Laura Bardier, Executive Director of the James Howell Foundation.

Organized around Leonora Carrington’s The Milk of Dreams, the exhibition reflects on what it means to be human today. It focuses on three thematic areas in particular: the representation of bodies and their metamorphoses; the relationship between individuals and technologies; and the connection between bodies and the Earth.

This program is free and open to ArtTable Circle, Board, and Executive level members only. Registration is required. ArtTable Circle and Board members receive priority registration. Registration for Executive level members will open on Wednesday, June 8, 2022.

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About the Cecilia Alemani

Cecilia Alemani is an Italian curator based in New York. Currently, she is the Artistic Director of the upcoming 59th International Art Exhibition (2022) in Venice. Since 2011, she has been the Director & Chief Curator of High Line Art, the public art program presented by the High Line in New York. In 2018, Alemani served as Artistic Director of the inaugural edition of Art Basel Cities: Buenos Aires. In 2017, she curated the Italian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale.

About the James Howell Foundation

The James Howell Foundation is a proud sponsor of the 59th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia “The Milk of Dreams.” The James Howell Foundation supports Howell’s vision of committed investigation of like-minded endeavors through a variety of professional programs and projects. The Foundation creates and furthers philanthropic initiatives that empower art professionals, curators and artists, as a contribution to cultural and humanistic advancement.

About The Milk of Dreams

“The Milk of Dreams” takes its title from a book by Leonora Carrington (1917–2011) in which the Surrealist artist describes a magical world where life is constantly re-envisioned through the prism of the imagination. The exhibition The Milk of Dreams takes Leonora Carrington’s otherworldly creatures, along with other figures of transformation, as companions on an imaginary journey through the metamorphoses of bodies and definitions of the human.

This exhibition is grounded in many conversations with artists held in the last few years. The questions that kept emerging from these dialogues seem to capture this moment in history when the very survival of the species is threatened, but also to sum up many other inquiries that pervade the sciences, arts, and myths of our time. How is the definition of the human changing? What constitutes life, and what differentiates plant and animal, human and non-human? What are our responsibilities towards the planet, other people, and other life forms? And what would life look like without us?

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Thank you to ArtTable Board member Laura Bardier for organizing this program.

Image: Cecilia Alemani; Cover art for the 59th Venice Biennale Catalog