E il topo 14

The Miracle of St. Harald Since May 27th at 8.07 sharp, on a balcony at the San Basilio vaporetto station, the late and much revered art curator Harald Szeemann has been appearing to two nine-year-old children, Anna Maria Corradi and Arno Puccioni, on their way to school. The two kids say they were called by name and asked by the apparition to stop for a few minutes. They reported the event to their parents, who were very skeptical until they actually witnessed the children stop under the balcony as if entranced from 8.07 until 8.11 AM. According to the account provided by the youngsters, Mr. Szeemann first acknowledges that he knows they are running to school, and will make sure they will not be late. Then the kids hear the sound of a cow, after which Harald Szeemann starts to talk to them. Other bystanders, it seems, can hear only the sound of the cow and the voice of Mr. Szeemann repeating the word “Generoso”.... But the children are able to decode Mr. Szeemann’s words. The apparition has sworn them to secrecy, but the children report that Mr. Szeemann has revealed to them the “4th secret of curatorial practice,” asking them not to divulge it until the Venice Biennale of 2023 when, according to his prophecy, a “different” curator will appointed to the job. Apparently Mr. Szeemann did not elaborate on what “different” might mean, and the children didn’t seem interested to know it either. The two children don’t seem to be affected too much by the vision of the Swiss curator, but according to their parents they are both rearranging the objects in their rooms with different criteria than in the past, reflecting what looks like an inner narrative only the kids are able to decipher.

Since the story was made public, other youngsters are gathering under the balcony. The authorities do not consider the apparitions of Mr. Szeemann to be cause for any particular concern.