The Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh has named Sohrab Mohebbi as curator for the 58th Carnegie International, set to take place in 2022.

A curator, writer and art critic, Mohebbi recently commenced work on the exhibition, coming from New York, where he served as curator at the cutting-edge contemporary art museum, SculptureCenter.

“I have deep admiration for (Mohebbi’s) curatorial work, which consistently foregrounds artists who are uniquely equipped to guide us in navigating the complexities of contemporary life,” says Eric Crosby, the Henry J. Heinz II Director of Carnegie Museum of Art. “As a curator, he is committed to examining immediate, local concerns in a broader picture of the world today.”

Crosby says Mohebbi is interested in Pittsburgh, and especially overlooked aspects of its history, as both subject matter and vehicle for the International, the oldest exhibition of international contemporary art in North America, and the second oldest in the world.

“This iteration of the exhibition will expand out of the museum and involve other sites, organizations and institutions in the city,” Mohebbi says. “There will be an opportunity to reach our constituents across the city and beyond, on and off site, in opening hours and after hours.”

“The themes of ‘decentralization’ and ‘reconstitution’ are guiding Mohebbi’s early research,” Crosby says. “Mohebbi envisions an International that will present Carnegie Museum of Art as one location among others in and around Pittsburgh and beyond, prompting the museum to forge new partnerships with arts organizations, music venues, local universities and other civic entities.

“By tracing social, artistic, intellectual and industrial histories of the city, Mohebbi hopes to connect local concerns rooted in Pittsburgh’s past to current issues prompting national and international debate today,” Crosby adds. “Central to his research will be a collaborative curatorial effort to explore how we reconstitute our lives after upheavals caused by colonialism, imperialism and environmental disaster.”

Document of the moment

Traditionally, the curator of the Carnegie International travels to artist studios and exhibitions around the globe to choose artists to participate in the Pittsburgh exhibition. Although the exhibition is still two years out, Crosby says, the covid-19 pandemic may force changes to that process.

“Covid-19 may put restrictions on how that process is done,” he says. “A lot can be done remotely, and every curator brings their own methodology to it.”

As for artists he would like to see included, Mohebbi says, “It is too early in the process to name artists at this moment. I have long-standing relationships and conversations with colleagues in different parts of the world, and they will inform my decision-making regarding the exhibition participants and projects.

“Everything we do will be a document of this moment. The covid restrictions, in my mind, operate as infrastructure and will shape the decision-making and the processes to create the works and the exhibition,” he adds. “Artists are considering the current limitations and possibilities, and we will see how they will be manifested in works.”

Staying nimble

Given the uncertainties, Crosby says, organizers are “trying to be as nimble as possible” in planning the exhibition calendar — which seems to suit Mohebbi’s vision.

“I believe that each iteration of the International had to confront, redefine and question how art breaks away from arbitrary definitions, taxonomies, boundaries and borders,” he says. “Art resists categorizations and classifications; the challenge at the heart of the curatorial project is therefore to contribute to the project of unframing.”

Established in 1896 as the Annual Exhibition, the Carnegie International has been presented under various titles and timetables throughout the years and has been a major source of acquisitions for the museum located in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. Since 1982, it has been mounted every three to five years.

The International is second in longevity only to the Venice Biennale, founded in 1895, as the world’s longest-running international survey exhibition — which was another draw for Mohebbi.

“When there was a chance to be part of such history, there were no second thoughts,” he says.

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