We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alice Scope a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alice, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

I curated the “Hotel Blue” exhibition for SXSW and Vellum LA, delving into the exploration of the concept of home and community for the future “us”. This exhibition showcases works by eight women, non-binary, and queer artists from six countries, all seeking to understand what home means for virtual beings and what kind of rights posthumans might possess.

I was working on this exhibition in January 2022, right before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It was challenging to grasp how this speculative and future-driven project could assist Ukrainians affected by the war. I was working with blockchain technology for the first time, and I opted to transform it into a fundraiser. All the artworks sold contributed to the NovaUkraine organization, which supports children in Ukraine.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My career as a curator started in 2014 in Los Angeles as a response to Russia’s invasion. I co-curated a photo exhibition titled “Ukraine 24: War and Peace,” featuring works from 13 Ukrainian photographers telling different stories about Ukraine post the Revolution of Dignity.

In 2015, I founded the experimental art center, act AkT, in Kyiv, located in a former silk factory spanning 39,000 square feet. The center aimed to support emerging Ukrainian artists and contribute to the country’s cultural development. With a team, we explored a mix of mediums, including performances in virtual reality, poetry, sculpture, photography, painting, and music. We provided 11 accessible studios for artists 24/7 and initiated KUCA (Korean-Ukrainian Contemporary Art Exchange) in collaboration with South Korean cultural workers.

In 2020, after securing a talent visa, I moved to the United States and joined Vellum, a women-run new media art gallery. From 2021 to 2023, our small team curated and produced over 25 exhibitions, collaborating with more than a hundred artists from diverse backgrounds. Our focus was on showcasing underrepresented artists and exploring themes such as trans and post-humanism, postgenderism, authenticity in machines, and speculative evolution.

For each exhibition, we leveraged blockchain technology and engaged with NFT-backed art. My interest lay in how technology could contribute to community building. Vellum serves as a practical example of how consistency, technology, wealth distribution, and a genuine concern for one’s city can collectively support artists and cultural workers.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

It would be great to start by ensuring that artists are fairly compensated for their work. Discouraging exploitative practices in the creative industry is crucial.

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

As with any technological tool, it can be used for good or for bad.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cultural-policy.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alicescope/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicescope/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/alicescope_

Image Credits
Anastasia Velicescu, Ruben Diaz