Our Story
At the beginning of the 2000s, not only the internet, but also computers and mobile phones were now in everyday use. Contemporary art, already largely influenced by the arrival of the web and already undergoing the first net art movements, experienced a new impact: digital culture. The Sharing is an APS (social promotion association) founded in Turin in 2003-2004 based on an idea by Chiara Garibaldi and the founding members, Luca Barbeni and Simona Lodi. The Sharing starts from the new cultural flow generated by the presence of digital technology in our lives.
In Italy, at that time, the cultural effects generated by the interaction between art and technology remained uncharted territory. There was scepticism about including this type of discipline in the artistic field. The Sharing anticipated what would gradually become an increasingly hot topic in our times: technology as an arts medium. Various types of expression are grouped under the label of technological art and culture. The association is interested in a wide range of disciplines, ranging from digital arts, new media art, interactive design, internet-based projects, graphic design, interactive digital installations, to art and robotics and videomaking. In all these areas, the use of technology is ambivalent and metamorphic: it is both a tool for artistic production and a topos and theme for reflection.
The Sharing has strong roots in the Turin and Piedmont area, but immediately extended its vision to the international scene. Its activities focus on two main areas: providing a platform for local and national tech artists to showcase their art work and gain recognition, while at the same time bringing the experiences of international artists to Italy.
This fruitful cultural exchange is an integral part of the association itself. Two of its important members, Bruce Sterling and Jasmina Tešanović, have a profound influence on the artistic and cultural soul of The Sharing, and therefore on the projects it promotes. This cultural drive culminated in 2005, when the association produced the first Share Festival, an annual event dedicated to art and technological culture. Wave.it, the title of the first edition, which featured more than 30 artists, questioned the impact that globalisation and innovative technologies have had on artistic production and the contemporary collective imagination. A year later came Share Prize, the first and longest-running award in Italy dedicated to tech art.
In addition to its exhibition activities, The Sharing is active on several fronts in its city. Since 2015, alongside the Share Festival, new projects have been developed, some still active today and others now historic, such as S.M.I.R., Share Crossing and Youth Museum. Action Sharing, one of the most successful historic artistic production projects, has been successful on both fronts of The Sharing's activity, locally and internationally. In 2007, it created Orchestra Meccanica Marinetti by Turin artist Motor Angelo Comino. In 2012, it brought the famous kinetic sound sculpture Cymatics by Japanese artist Suguru Goto to Turin.
Share Project is the name we give to the summon of our activities in the field of art and technology. For twenty years, we have been developing educational events, productions and research initiatives focused on creativity and contemporary art. We create concrete opportunities such as exhibitions, events, workshops and seminars. We produce high-tech artistic works thanks to our collaboration with artists who have become part of our circle over the years. We are fond of those who have always accompanied us, and we welcome those who are interested in our world.
We have several years behind us, but we are still writing our story.
We continue to bring together visual arts, the web, environmental sustainability, digital technology and robotics through a transdisciplinary approach.
We continue to strongly believe in the value of research and innovation as a critical expression of a digital and global society, and we want to bring greater collective awareness to technological and cultural development.
Contributor List updated to 2024 ︎︎︎
Our Areas of Action
EVENTS ABOUT ART AND DIGITAL CULTURE
Every year, The Sharing organises Share Festival, Italy's first and longest-running festival dedicated to technological art. Each year, the festival awards a prize to the work that best reflects the chosen theme. Created to explore the relationships between art, science and society, Share Prize has seen the participation of local and international artists over the years, becoming a benchmark for contemporary tech art.
ARTISTIC PRODUCTION AND RESEARCH
Over the years, The Sharing has grown by focusing on the artistic production of artists, creatives and makers. Starting with the pioneering experience of Action Sharing, and continuing with the current Artmaker and Artmaker Young, the association supports the creation of works that blend art, science and technology.
TRAINING AND YPUNGER GENERATIONS
Through Share Campus, The Sharing engages students from the Accademia Albertina and the Politecnico di Torino, running annual workshops dedicated to digital creativity strategies and the integration of artificial intelligence into creative processes. With this same approach, The Sharing promotes Artmaker Young, a mentorship project for artists under 30 that aims to grow into residencies for young talent.
Every year, The Sharing organises Share Festival, Italy's first and longest-running festival dedicated to technological art. Each year, the festival awards a prize to the work that best reflects the chosen theme. Created to explore the relationships between art, science and society, Share Prize has seen the participation of local and international artists over the years, becoming a benchmark for contemporary tech art.
ARTISTIC PRODUCTION AND RESEARCH
Over the years, The Sharing has grown by focusing on the artistic production of artists, creatives and makers. Starting with the pioneering experience of Action Sharing, and continuing with the current Artmaker and Artmaker Young, the association supports the creation of works that blend art, science and technology.
TRAINING AND YPUNGER GENERATIONS
Through Share Campus, The Sharing engages students from the Accademia Albertina and the Politecnico di Torino, running annual workshops dedicated to digital creativity strategies and the integration of artificial intelligence into creative processes. With this same approach, The Sharing promotes Artmaker Young, a mentorship project for artists under 30 that aims to grow into residencies for young talent.
VISION AND ARTISTIC DIRECTION
At the heart of The Sharing's vision is also the visionary and futuristic perspective of its artistic direction. Bruce Sterling, science fiction writer and cyberpunk pioneer, and Jasmina Tešanović, author and activist, offer The Sharing's project a critical and philosophical perspective on contemporary culture, art and technological development. In addition to his work as artistic director and curator of Share Festival, Sterling curates transdisciplinary projects such as Il Versificatore and the Artmaker Blog, while Tešanović is responsible for IOWT – Internet of Women Things, a historic initiative to promote female participation in the maker and technological world.
ART, SUSTAINABILITY AND TERRITORY
Among The Sharing's symbolic productions, Cristallo di Luce (Crystal of Light) stands out, a public artwork by artist Diego Scroppo. The sculpture is powered by a photovoltaic system that produces and returns energy to the community, enhancing the public and collective dimension of the artistic experience. Cristallo di Luce is emblematic of how the association combines art, sustainability and territory.
At the heart of The Sharing's vision is also the visionary and futuristic perspective of its artistic direction. Bruce Sterling, science fiction writer and cyberpunk pioneer, and Jasmina Tešanović, author and activist, offer The Sharing's project a critical and philosophical perspective on contemporary culture, art and technological development. In addition to his work as artistic director and curator of Share Festival, Sterling curates transdisciplinary projects such as Il Versificatore and the Artmaker Blog, while Tešanović is responsible for IOWT – Internet of Women Things, a historic initiative to promote female participation in the maker and technological world.
ART, SUSTAINABILITY AND TERRITORY
Among The Sharing's symbolic productions, Cristallo di Luce (Crystal of Light) stands out, a public artwork by artist Diego Scroppo. The sculpture is powered by a photovoltaic system that produces and returns energy to the community, enhancing the public and collective dimension of the artistic experience. Cristallo di Luce is emblematic of how the association combines art, sustainability and territory.
