KUNSTSURFER was founded in 2021 by a collective composed of Chiara Giardi, Evita Verbrugge, Heiko Schmid, Itay Blaish and Ugo Pecoraio, five curators who are mostly based in Switzerland.June 2022 Itay Blaish left the collective. The add-on was programmed and is technically supported by the artist Michael Aschauer.
KUNSTSURFER was funded by the city of Zurich (Creative Tech for Good), ZHdK Fonds/Mercator Foundation and the Taiwanese Ministry of Culture.
The current curatorial collective consists of:
Chiara Giardi is an independent curator and art educator interested in research-based, transdisciplinary artistic and curatorial practices with a focus on digital collaborative processes. She holds an MA in Art Education, Curatorial Studies (Zurich University of the Arts) and a BA in Liberal Arts and Sciences, major Culture and History (University College Freiburg, DE). She worked at institutions like documenta fifteen (DE), videocity (CH) and the National Gallery San Marino (SMR).
Evita Verbrugge is a cultural mediator, curator, DJ and event organizer based in Lucerne. She completed her B.A. in International Arts & Culture Studies in Rotterdam and Istanbul and her MA in Curatorial Studies at Zurich University of Arts (CH). She is currently working as art mediator at Kunstmuseum Luzern.
Dr. Heiko Schmid is an art historian, curator and author. He currently is employed as a lecturer in the Master Art Education Curatorial Studies at Zurich University of the Arts as well as a lecturer in the Bachelor in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at Luzern University of applied Sciences and Arts. Furthermore Heiko Schmid is chairman of the commission KiöR (art in public space) of the city of Zurich. Heiko Schmid lives and works in Zurich (Switzerland).
Ugo Pecoraio is an independent curator, specialized in blockchain and crypto projects and the strategic planning and conception of digital exhibition formats as well as the development of innovative positioning options for artists and designers. He is currently employed at HEK (House of Electronic Arts) as head of communications and is involved in all web 3 and blockchain based projects. Ugo Pecoraio lives and works in Basel (Switzerland).