Elora Tescari (M.Res in Curatorial/Knowledge, 2015-2016)

Elora is an MRes student in Curatorial/Knowledge. In 2015 she graduated in Art History and Cultural Studies at the University of Sussex. In 2014 she was the recipient of the Junior Research Award (University of Sussex); her research was also presented at the British Conference of Undergraduate Research at the University of Winchester. In recent years Elora has been involved in a number of educational and participatory projects. She has worked with the Widening Participation team (University of Sussex) on a series of workshops for children and young students aimed at increasing awareness about higher education and the study of Visual Cultures. She was also invited as a guest lecturer at I.T.S.O.S Albe Steiner (Milan, Italy). Elora has also collaborated with the non-profit organisation Engage and Create, where artworks are used to encourage discussion among elderly people affected by dementia.

Research project: Elora’s research looks at the classical tripartition of human experience: Labour (poiesis), Action (praxis), and Intellect (theoria), in an attempt to (re)place the sphere of leisure (scholè) and play (paidiá). The project is concerned with the potentiality of ‘paidiá’ as a disrupting element of everyday life through the appropriation of urban space. ‘Paidiá’ is a constituting force, rather than a form of relaxation – as Aristotle would have it.