Davide Ferri
My warm and welcoming fair: it will not be just a place for insiders
«A manager must not lose their intellectual dimension — that’s what makes the approach truly human»
This is not a simple handover — it’s a shift in posture. With Simone Menegoi stepping aside, Arte Fiera places its future in the hands of someone who has long worked on processes rather than spotlights. Davide Ferri does not arrive with the profile of a star director, but with something far more interesting: that of a curator who knows the material from the inside — painting as a contemporary field of tension, exhibitions as critical devices, fairs as spaces to rethink rather than simply fill. Since 2020, as head of the Pittura XXI section, Ferri has already shown how Bologna can function as a laboratory rather than a showcase. He lives in Rome with his partner Cecilia Canziani, yet his work constantly moves between institutions, schools, festivals, foundations and exhibition formats. He teaches, curates, builds new models, and reflects on exhibition-making as an experience rather than a neutral frame. Across museums, theatre festivals and private collections, one question has always followed him: what can an exhibition still do today? Now that question moves to the very center of Arte Fiera — and that is no small thing. In an art system that often confuses the new with the noisy, Ferri seems to be heading in the opposite direction: depth instead of surface, vision instead of replicable formats, long-term thinking instead of hype. His direction promises fewer special effects and more critical substance. Less fair as supermarket, more fair as cultural platform. The feeling is that Arte Fiera is about to stop chasing external models and start questioning once again what an Italian — European, contemporary — art fair can truly be today. And Davide Ferri, with his rigorous and oblique profile, seems the right person to bring the questions back to the center. Not to reassure. To complicate things. Which, in the art world, is always a good beginning.
Why did you choose to title the 2026 edition of Arte Fiera “Cosa sarà”?
DAVIDE FERRI
It all comes from a song by Lucio Dalla, the greatest singer-songwriter from Bologna. The title somehow refers to the idea of a new cycle beginning. Choosing the theme was one of the very first things I did when I started as director. The first step was sharing a title with all the collaborators. Having a theme to repeat — and to sing, since it’s a song — immediately set the atmosphere for the work that followed.
Is there a sort of protocol for visiting the fair? Where should people begin?
DAVIDE FERRI
This year I tried to suggest one through a text written in “easy language,” because it reflects my idea of a warm, welcoming fair. It’s a way of saying: this isn’t a place only for insiders. In general, I distributed the five curated sections like a musical score across the two pavilions, so they guide visitors along the Main Section. The pavilions are long and narrow — beautiful, filled with natural light — but you need reasons to encourage people to walk all the way through.
As a fair director, do you feel more like a manager or a curator?
DAVIDE FERRI
Inevitably, a bit more like a manager. But a manager who must not forget the intellectual side — because for me that translates into a more human approach and, in some ways, a more authoritative one in what I’m trying to do.
What is Bologna’s greatest strength as a city?
DAVIDE FERRI
I’m fascinated by its role as a cultural bridge between North and South. Historically, Bologna has played that role not only economically but culturally as well. And I like that Arte Fiera deliberately maintains a strong Italian identity: it’s the first fair of the year, it has a festive, almost “popular” spirit in the best sense of the word. Major international galleries have shown interest again this year, but I preferred to be cautious. At this stage, what matters most to me is strengthening the relationship with Italian galleries, who are truly supporting the fair.
You live surrounded by art — have you ever felt the need to keep some distance from it?
DAVIDE FERRI
Yes, absolutely. I have a fourteen-year-old son who helps me keep that distance: for him, having both parents working in art often makes art the most boring thing in the world.
Interview: Germano D’Acquisto
Portraits: Alessio Ammanati
