EDOARDO MONTI

Generazione Critica: Palazzo Monti is located in Brescia, the venue, which dates back to the thirteenth century, cyclically hosts artists and curators who together create exhibition itineraries as well as scheduling workshops and studio visits. How did this transformation from a private residence to a cultural center happen? What was the relationship with the city of Brescia?

Edoardo Monti: The house has been part of my mother’s family since the 1960s and only returned to us in 2017, after several years of renting. Thinking about what to do with it, I proposed to my parents to launch the project which later became Palazzo Monti. It was a bit of a leap into the void, having never had a similar experience but having believed in it from the start has immediately borne fruit. The relationship with the city is very positive and I always want to say that the project is not for Brescia but with Brescia. The location was not an acquisition or rent with a strategic choice but an inherited space, fortunately present in the historic center of a very beautiful city surrounded by fertile territory from all points of view.

GC: As a cultural center it seems essential for you to have the focus to create a community of artists and curators, their collaboration and exchange is the engine that gives rise to the various activities of the building. How to try to keep the dialogue between different artists alive? Is the selection process also important to facilitate the exchange between the different operators?

EM: The selection is made every three months by our directors who are located in every corner of the world: New York, London, Paris, Seoul and me here in Brescia. This allows a very even selection that embrace various disciplines and different nationality. We receive over 400 requests every month and the selection process becomes a real job, essential for the growth of the project in all its manifestations. Most of the time, artists who are invited over a period of one month get to know new artists who work with new mediums and are not intentionally paired with other residents. The vast majority of cases they get very immediately united. There have been many strong friendships that have been created during the residences and it has happened that some couples still live together in their country of origin. By living, working and exhibiting within the same space, the artists who take part in the Palazzo Monti projects have the opportunity both to have private spaces but also the opportunity to see each other several times a day and moments of conviviality.

Palazzo Monti, © Photo: Omar Sartor

GC: The building is conceived as a real nucleus capable of offering artists a laboratory, a house and an exhibition space. It seems to pursue a sort of contemporary patronage, visible in other Italian and international realities. Do you think we can actually speak of a revival of patronage?

EM: Certainly in recent years there have been many projects that support artists from the moment of production, which is essential to the practice of an artist. The intention to open others I’m sure is shared by many people but the investment to start and maintain these projects is almost always paid by private individuals and it would be nice to live in a world where, at least in Italy, there are more funds for research and the state support young artists. Another problem is the duration of many projects, which are born and die within a few months or years, when what is needed are projects that can last over time, to give guarantees to those who are part of it and those who want to support by investing resources or energy.

GC: Over the years you have really hosted many artists who have given life to different experiences in the building. Were there experiences that were particularly useful for you and that gave a significant imprint to the development of the project?

EM: Each artist brings with him a baggage different from the others and consequently always fresh and interesting comments and feedback. We try to modify and improve the project as much as possible and always listen to what the artists have to bring. It is difficult to think of a small number of the over 200 artists and I am convinced that each of them has always brought something to improve us.

Palazzo Monti, © Photo: Omar Sartor

GC: In the annual program there are many people who take care of the various activities. How is the general direction of the projects managed? According to what criteria do you choose the artists?

EM: My responsibility is hybrid through the organizational, managerial, curating and general artistic direction role that is implemented through collaborations with various team members always aware of what others are working on but with various personal responsibilities. We are a very young and dynamic team and many decisions are shared and changed based on everyone’s feedback. However, it is important that there is someone with a vision who, while being flexible and accepting tweaks, chooses to carry it through to the end.

GC: What were the reference points of your project? Were there particular cases that were able to make a decisive change in Palazzo Monti?

EM: I say this with honesty: I had never visited an artists’ residence before launching Palazzo Monti. I had only done research online but the project was born after a year of preventive work and monthly evolves based on our pure experience. We have recently carried out major restoration and energy improvement works which I am sure will make the spaces even more comfortable for visitors, residents and teams. Every project and exhibition and artist we host is equally important to us and we are happy to be able to expand our projects outside of Palazzo Monti month by month.

GC: Relating and proposing activities for young artists, sometimes still students, requires a dialogue and therefore a focus on training institutions. For those working in this sector, the gap between training and professional experience is considerable, more than in other European countries. What kind of actions have you taken to facilitate the dialogue and the initiation to these virtuous experiences?

EM: There were three projects aimed at giving more information to students and young artists who have just left the Academy, as well as face-to-face visits to their classrooms and studios to tell about our experience and invite them to come and visit us. The first project is the Degree Show, which for three years now has seen students from all over Italy participate in the band: over 300 requests, a much lower number of selected ones, each exhibiting one work in September. The second is ‘Fresh’, a series of short videos made in the period of the first lockdown, where I asked three questions and one was then addressed to me by people in the sector who could give some important and dynamic suggestions to the listeners. This format was then declined in ‘Fresco – The Masterclass’: four lessons held online in March 2022 and completely free, which focused on topics that are not usually dealt with by the Academy. The topics were relations with galleries and collectors, sales and prices, communication and online presence, archive and organization of the artist’s studio .

Palazzo Monti, © photo: Omar Sartor

GC: Residencies, tenders, open calls, awards, clients… the range of opportunities for younger generation artists has significantly expanded in recent years. From your point of view, is being an artist’s studio assistant still an interesting educational and professional role for a young author?

EM: Absolutely yes, and indeed I strongly recommend it. Assisting another artist, someone who has experience with galleries, institutions, collectors and curators, can teach you a great deal and give you valuable tips that can be tailored to your career.

GC: Your archive can be visited on Artsy, an online platform for the art trade. Surely after the consequences created by the pandemic crisis, Artsy has also taken on a different role, becoming essential for being able to exhibit their exhibitions online. What is your relationship with this platform? How do you review your projects on a digital dimension?

EM: We have an institutional profile on Artsy since 2018, on which we regularly upload photos of the works that we monthly present at Palazzo Monti. It is the best and main platform for this type of interaction with art and, although it is not used for commercial purposes by us, we nevertheless believe that it is very important to have a presence on this platform as well. For some years now, part of the collection has also been visible on Google Arts and Culture, which have documented the works by creating very high resolution photographs.

GC: The decentralized position with respect to the more centralized places such as Milan, Turin, Venice certainly requires attention to communication strategies, also and as a consequence of the pandemic situation. How does Palazzo Monti use social networks such as Instagram or the website itself? What are the fundamental elements for you also to keep alive a contact with a wider public than that of Brescia?

EM: On the one hand, the pandemic has accelerated a digitalization process that was inevitable, but on the other hand it confirmed the importance of a physical and personal relationship. We embrace both a digital communication method, mainly on Instagram and on our website, which is very important to reach artists in every corner of the world. The results of these investments are confirmed over the years with the increase in requests and visits. On the other hand, we are lucky enough to have spaces and a mentality that allows us to organize situations of conviviality, such as dinners, lunches and physical meetings, which strengthen the relationship with our visitors and artists.

GC: Are there any new projects you are working on for the future of Palazzo Monti?

EM: In the summer we will launch a sticker album that will be the main element that will trigger a series of workshops for children and adolescents, free and on a monthly basis. We can’t wait to present it!

19/07/2022

EDOARDO MONTI

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