Gabi Scardi is an acclaimed art curator, scholar and critic. She lives and works in Milano and Rome. In Rome, she is the curator of MAXXI (Italy's NationalMuseum of 21st Century Arts), and co-director of the European Course for Contemporary Art Curators (CECAC), together with Roberto Pinto.
Scardi teaches Contemporary Art and Public Art at several institutions, including Cattolica University, Domus Academy and Trento School of Management. She is also a correspondent for the Sunday cultural supplement of the Il Sole 24 ore newspaper and for various local and international art publications and has initiated various conferences on contemporary art.
Her credo and her broad cultural activities are based on the idea that art is not simply about pleasure. She believes art has a central role in the development of any urban or national culture, in the formulation of values, and in the way these values are transmitted to the public. This is why she seeks to promote interaction between cultural institutions and the community, and stresses the importance of non-profit art organizations and museums.
Scardi stayed at the JCVA in January, 2009. This was not her first visit to Israel, but she said it was the most engaging, both personally and professionally. The JCVA opened the local art scene before her, and allowed her to make connections with artists, curators, galleries and museums.
During her stay in Jerusalem, Scardi visited Bethlehem to meet Palestinian artists. In Tel Aviv and elsewhere, she met with some 25 artists. She also visited many museums and galleries. "The more I saw," she said, "the better I wanted to know Israeli art." She would be happy to continue working with Israeli artists and promoting collaborations between them and their European counterparts.
