INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

As part of the activities of IartNET – an international platform for artistic research and cultural heritage at Italian higher arts education institutions, the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera announces the international symposium New Directions for Participation in Cultural Heritage, promoted by the Accademia di Belle Arti di Catania and curated by Laura Barreca, which will take place Saturday 11th April 2026. 

The initiative addresses issues related to new approaches and new design methods that guide a participatory vision of cultural heritage. Starting from the Faro Convention on the value of cultural heritage for society and the rights and responsibilities of citizens, and through the involvement of transversal disciplinary fields, the conference aims to explore key questions such as co-design and the redefinition of new models of heritage care. Through case studies, practices, and accredited research at both national and European levels, these approaches contribute to a broader, more horizontal, and democratic vision.

At the core of these new forms of heritage-making, participatory practices are based on the principle of interconnection, since, as the British critic Claire Bishop states, “the hope is that participating subjects, once emancipated, find themselves able to determine their own social and political reality” (Participation, 2006).
Among the topics addressed are heritage activation and future strategies for the internationalization of artistic research through the creation of inter-institutional hubs.

The international conference is part of the PNRR project INTAFAM IartNET – an international platform for artistic research and cultural heritage at Italian higher arts education institutions funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU, Mission 4, led by the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera and coordinated by Nicoletta Leonardi.