Space and Earthling

In what ways can we think of art as something that might exist on other planets? And how is terrestrial art perceived from an extraterrestrial point of view? What is the relationship between art and planet Earth, beyond the often simple equations that ecology seems to formulate? Guillermo Trotti has designed buildings, environments and accessories dedicated to human life on the Moon and Mars. His works can be found in museum collections. Béatrice Grenier has been thinking and writing for years about the fact that it is always architecture that allows art to exist in space, to take root in the urban and non-urban landscape. Both of them reflects on which may be a vanguard in culture, and which risks have to be taken into account. By inviting them to confront each other, I want to invite them to reflect, from opposing points of view, on the relationship between art and the planet – whichever one it may be.

Host: Emanuele Coccia

Emanuele Coccia is a lecturer and philosopher, currently serving as an associate professor at the École des hautes études en sciences sociales in Paris. His practice is drawn to a variety of themes, of which the relationship between art and natural sciences represents a core part. As a host he will further investigate how these two disciplines can ultimately find a balance in two different environments, like space and planet Earth. Emanuele is appreciated for his authored books and contributions to art catalogues, including Philosophy of the Home: Domestic Space and Happiness (2024), Metamorphoses (2021), The Life of Plants - A Metaphysics of Mixture (2018), and Damien Hirst - Cherry Blossoms (2023), all of which have established him as a sensitive aesthete and dandy of philosophy.

Béatrice Grenier

Beatrice Grenier is a curator and writer based in Paris. Currently the Director of Curatorial Affairs at Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Beatrice writes about global contemporary architecture and museums. Prior, Beatrice was Content Strategy consultant for Google Arts and Culture in China. Between 2015-2019, she oversaw the realization of large-scale institutional projects by internationally acclaimed artist Cai Guo-Qiang. She is the co-author of Tashkent. A Modernist Capital (Rizzoli Books). Her forthcoming book The Architecture of Art will be published in 2025 (Rizzoli International). Through her work and writing Beatrice has been interested in architecture as what allows art to exist in space, or take root in the urban and non-urban landscape.

Guillermo Trotti

Architect Guillermo Trotti is an expert in architecture design and development in extreme environments. His practice has always challenged the limits of architecture by confronting the subject with environments related to space and sustainability. Projects include the International Space Station, the South Pole Station and Lunar Bases and has explored every continent on Spaceship Earth. Bridging design with architecture, many of his works have been showcased in major museums in the United States and Europe. He currently serves as the President of Trotti & Associates, Inc. and as a Governing Member of the International Space University.