My exploration of AICA’s global network highlights her strategic selection of curators and cultural professionals whose expertise aligns with contemporary art trends and challenges, such as digital innovation, multidisciplinary integration, and social engagement. Her thoughtful approach facilitates meaningful dialogue and collaborations that advance curatorial practices and promote cultural exchange, thereby strengthening the global art community and addressing pressing issues within the art world.
In this episode, I talked with Joke de Wolf, exploring her diverse projects and delving into her presentation at the AICA International Congress, where she addressed the complex legacy of colonialism, highlighting its impact on art, identity, and cultural narratives.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR: MIHAELA ION
Mihaela Ion holds a Ph.D. in History and is a curator, cultural manager, and art researcher based in Bucharest. Since 2021, she has been a member of AICA and has served as an International Board Member since 2022, as well as a member of the Digital Strategies Committee. Over the past 18 years, she has presented papers on Communist art, cultural wars, and contemporary artwork at leading conferences across Europe. Mihaela collaborates with several art galleries and museums throughout the continent. Her Ph.D. thesis focuses on the heritage of Communist-era artworks.
Mihaela has also worked as a cultural manager in London with body>data>space, and in Paris, Sélestat, Strasbourg, and Nancy during her Courants du Monde grant from the French Ministry of Culture. In 2010, she co-founded Atelierul Magazine, an active international online and offline platform that fosters intercultural dialogue between design creators and the public. Her recent cultural expertise in project evaluation was demonstrated through her work with Apexart in New York.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR: JOKE DE WOLF
Dr. Joke de Wolf, President of AICA Netherlands, is a fulltime freelance art critic, publishing regularly for the national newspaper Trouw and weekly newsmagazine De Groene Amsterdammer. She studied Art History and History of Photography at the University of Amsterdam, in Paris and in Weimar, and she got her PhD at the University of Groningen (Netherlands) with her dissertation on the French nineteenth century photographer Charles Marville and his photographs of the streets of Paris.
In March 2025, she published her book ‘Het Moedermodel’ – ‘The Mother Mold – about Art, Women and Motherhood’. She is preparing a book about censorship in silent movies. Besides her work at the board of AICA Netherlands, she also is a board member of the Nederlands Fotogenootschap (Dutch Photography Association) and she is a board member of the Buning Brongers Stichting, which organises a biennial award for young painters working in The Netherlands.
