NABA presents “NABA TALKS: L’atto creativo. Al confine tra il noi e l’immaginario”, a series of public lectures on the theme of creativity, explored from a range of perspectives. The programme is curated by Simone Domenico Liscio (NABA Special Programmes Course Leader), Anthony Marasco (NABA Lecturer), and Gabriele Sassone (writer and NABA Academic Master in Art and Ecology Course Leader).
The events will take place at Anteo Spazio del Cinema (Piazza XXV Aprile 8, Milan) on May 7, 13, 20, 27 and 29 at 7:30 PM, and will feature contributions from lecturers and researchers within the Italian academic landscape.
NABA presents “NABA TALKS: L’atto creativo. Al confine tra il noi e l’immaginario”: “L’eterno ritorno del nuovo. Stile e creatività al tempo delle reti neurali”
The first event in the NABA TALKS series will be held on Wednesday, May 7, from 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM, with a lecture titled “L’eterno ritorno del nuovo. Stile e creatività al tempo delle reti neurali”. The discussion will explore how artificial intelligence's possibilities are currently shaping the field of artistic practices. The growing use of AI in art raises questions around authorship, creativity, and legal legitimacy, while also transforming the very concept of “style” through techniques such as Neural Style Transfer (NST).
These algorithms, which allow the modification of an artwork’s style, raise the risk of unintentional plagiarism, while some artists are actively seeking to protect their own stylistic identity. These issues will be at the heart of a conversation between Andrea Pinotti (Aesthetics lecturer at the Philosopy Department “Piero Martinetti”, Università degli Studi di Milano) and Simone Domenico Liscio.
The evening will open with a presentation by Guido Tattoni (NABA Dean), focusing on how the Academy interprets the concept of Third Mission, defined by the Italian National Agency for the Evaluation of Universities and Research Institutes (ANVUR) as “the propensity of institutions to engage with the socio-economic context through the promotion and transfer of knowledge.”
NABA presents “NABA TALKS: L’atto creativo. Al confine tra il noi e l’immaginario”: “Immaginazione e decolonialismo a confronto: nuove forme di soggettività”
On Tuesday, May 13, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM, the second talk in the series, “Immaginazione e decolonialismo a confronto: nuove forme di soggettività”, will take place. The event will feature Fabrizia Bandi (Research Fellow in Aesthetics at the Department of Philosophy “Piero Martinetti”, Università degli Studi di Milano), Paolo Franzo (Researcher at the Department of Architecture, Università degli Studi di Firenze), and Bernardo Paci (Research Fellow at the Department of Political Science, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II), in conversation with Simone Domenico Liscio.
Together, they will discuss how imagination, throughout the history of philosophy, has been understood as a bridge between sensory perception and intellect—playing a key role in how we interpret reality. At the same time, it is what allows us to drift away from the present, as when we become lost in thought. Imagination is essential to the creative process, defining the figure of the artist across disciplines—from architecture to fashion design. Today, there is an increasing awareness of the ways in which non-Western creativity has historically been overlooked—an issue rooted in the legacy of modernity and colonialism. In this context, the decolonisation of creative and design practices is emerging as a crucial area of contemporary reflection.
NABA presents “NABA TALKS: L’atto creativo. Al confine tra il noi e l’immaginario”: “Biomorfismo e planetarietà”
On May 20, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM, the talk “Biomorfismo e planetarietà” will feature Line Ulrika Christiansen (Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design) in conversation with Anthony Marasco (NABA Lecturer). The crisis of globalisation has given rise to new “theories of everything” that place the planet at the centre of reflection. At the same time, design is increasingly turning to biomorphism—an approach that allows nature to shape both form and the solutions proposed to human challenges. Is there a meaningful connection between the emergence of “planetarity” as a contemporary category of thought and the renewed attention to natural forms as a way to inhabit our world more consciously?
NABA presents “NABA TALKS: L’atto creativo. Al confine tra il noi e l’immaginario”: “Meccaniche Celesti: cultura e industria nel cuore della Modernità”
“Meccaniche Celesti: cultura e industria nel cuore della Modernità” will be the focus of the talk on May 27, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM. The event will feature a conversation between Giuseppe Lupo (Italian writer, essayist, and Contemporary Italian Literature lecturer at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano) and Gabriele Sassone. Starting from Lupo’s essays “La modernità malintesa” and “Storia d’amore e macchine da scrivere2, the dialogue will explore how industrialisation transformed cultural production in the twentieth century—revealing the deep interconnection between technological progress and creativity, and the lasting impact of this relationship on how we perceive and represent the world.
NABA presents “NABA TALKS: L’atto creativo. Al confine tra il noi e l’immaginario”: “Creatività senza genere”
The final event of the NABA TALKS series, “Creatività senza genere”, will take place on Thursday, May 29, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM. The discussion will feature lecturers Carlotta Cossutta (Università Statale di Milano) and Cirus Rinaldi (Università Statale di Palermo) in conversation with Simone Domenico Liscio, following an opening introduction by Tristan Guida, representative of the NABA Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
“Creatività senza genere” explores the relationship between women and creativity, and more broadly between gender and creativity, shedding light on how the absence, exclusion and marginalisation of women have shaped the very way we conceive creative practices. This condition gives rise to a form of epistemic injustice in which the actions and gestures of women go unseen—not because they are not performed, but because they are not recognised as creative, measured instead against a male-centred model of creativity. The talk will also reflect on the notion of “deviance”, understood not as an intrinsic quality of an action, but as something that emerges from the social response of a specific audience—or multiple audiences—in relation to the institutionalised expectations of a given context and the norms imposed by systems of social control.
NABA presents “NABA TALKS: L’atto creativo. Al confine tra il noi e l’immaginario”: event details
May 7, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM
L’eterno ritorno del nuovo. Stile e creatività al tempo delle reti neurali
Speakers: Andrea Pinotti, Simone Domenico Liscio, and Guido Tattoni
May 13, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM
Immaginazione e decolonialismo a confronto: nuove forme di soggettività
Speakers: Fabrizia Bandi, Paolo Franzo, Bernardo Paci, and Simone Domenico Liscio
May 20, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM
Biomorfismo e planetarietà
Speakers: Line Ulrika Christiansen and Anthony Marasco
May 27, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM
Meccaniche Celesti: cultura e industria nel cuore della Modernità
Speakers: Giuseppe Lupo and Gabriele Sassone
May 29, from 7:30 to 9:00 PM
Creatività senza genere
Speakers: Carlotta Cossutta, Cirus Rinaldi, Simone Domenico Liscio, and Tristan Guida
Anteo Spazio Cinema
Piazza XXV Aprile 8, Milan
Admission upon registration via the Anteo Palazzo del Cinema website