Duchamp dopo Duchamp. La Biennale di Venezia curata da Koyo Kouoh è un ready-made espanso
The article analyzes the 61st Venice Biennale, curated by Koyo Kouoh, and the concurrent exhibition "Helter Skelter" at Fondazione Prada, arguing that Marcel Duchamp's concept of the ready-made has undergone a profound transformation. Rather than applying to industrial objects as in Duchamp's original gesture, the ready-made now operates on subjects, communities, minorities, vernacular traditions, and cultural archives, which are repositioned within the exhibition space to generate meaning. The author sees this shift as a curatorial strategy that extends the reach of the institution, turning any presence—material or immaterial—into an exposable element.
This matters because it signals a major evolution in contemporary curatorial practice, where the ready-made has moved from a tool of institutional critique to a mechanism of legitimation. By framing the Biennale and the Prada show as "expanded ready-mades," the article highlights how major international exhibitions now function as cultural montages that activate pre-existing materials, identities, and discourses. This shift redefines the role of the curator as a producer of meaning and raises critical questions about authorship, institutional power, and the boundaries of art in the 21st century.