“in living contact”
October 26th – December 6th
Curators: Ivo Mesquita and Ana Paula Cohen
Pavilhão Ciccillo Matarazzo
Parque Ibirapuera, São Paulo, Brazil
28th Bienal de São Paulo: “in living contact”
The 28th Bienal de São Paulo proposes a different format from its previous editions, offering a platform for observation and reflection upon the culture and system of biennials, taking its own experience as a case study. It considers the changes that have taken place in the cultural context in which it is set, as well as those occurring in the world at large, due to the globalization of economic and cultural relationships, and the popularization of contemporary art through exhibitions in museums, fairs and biennials. Instead of trying to produce an all-encompassing vision of the phenomenon of Art today, its seems to be more important to sketch out specificities, and produce structural cartographies, setting in motion a process of investigative and critical work that will keep pace with changes perceived within a given artistic circuit and its practices. In this sense, the 28th Bienal proposes a range of exhibition and dissemination apparatuses to mediate contact between the audience and the production of knowledge in a collective event of such scope:
Square
The transformation of the ground floor of the Bienal Pavilion into a public square proposes a new relationship between the Institution and its surroundings. This space will have an intense interdisciplinary schedule for the duration of the event, always based upon proposals that will activate the “square” as a space for social interaction.
Open Plan
Unlike earlier editions of the Bienal, which turned the inner space of the modernist pavilion into exhibition rooms, the second floor will be completely open, revealing its structure and offering visitors a physical architectural experience.
Plan of Readings
Taking as a starting point the Wanda Svevo Historical Archive – the greatest heritage of the Institution, its memory –, the occupation of the third floor seeks to activate this history, allowing each one of its constituting elements to reveal its transforming potential in the present. It is constituted of three main strategies. The exhibition: artists working on the borderline between reality and fiction, creation of documents and instituted truths, personal memory and collective history, were invited to develop and/or present projects that bring to light some aspects of the history of the Bienal, from different perspectives. The library: the 28th Bienal has been collecting catalogs from the greatest possible number of biennials and periodical exhibitions around the world, to be presented in the exhibition space. The conferences are intended to feed the Historical Archive with a systematic reflection upon issues that concern the history and role of the Bienal de São Paulo today, as well as its exhibition model. The four main themes are: 1) The Bienal de São Paulo and the Brazilian artistic milieu: memory and projection; 2) Backstage; 3) Biennials, biennials, biennials…; 4) History as a flexible matter: artistic practices and new systems of reading. A series of talks with artists related somehow to the history of the Bienal de São Paulo is also part of this platform.
Publications
The newspaper 28b, freely distributed for nine weeks around the city of São Paulo, brings together texts about, and images of, the exhibition’s program, as well as critical reviews, interdisciplinary articles, and artist interventions; the nine issues collected will constitute the exhibition’s catalog. Other publications will systematize the research, conferences and talks.
Artists:
Marina Abramovic, Eija-Liisa Ahtila, Vasco Araújo, Micol Assaël, avaf, Dora Longo Bahia, Sarnath Banerjee, Erick Beltrán, Mabe Bethônico, Leya Mira Brander, Fernando Bryce, Rodrigo Bueno, Sophie Calle, Mircea Cantor, Iran do Espírito Santo, Ângela Ferreira, Fischerspooner, Peter Friedl, Israel Galván, Goldin + Senneby, O Grivo, Carsten Höller, Maurício Ianês, Joan Jonas, Paul Ramírez Jonas, Armin Linke, Cristina Lucas, Rubens Mano, Allan McCollum, João Modé, Matt Mullican, Carlos Navarrete, Rivane Neuenschwander, Javier Peñafiel, Alexander Pilis, Nicolás Robbio, Joe Sheehan, Gabriel Sierra, Valeska Soares, Los Super Elegantes, Vibeke Tandberg, Carla Zaccagnini
Special projects:
“Archivo Abierto”, Ivaldo Bertazzo, Cinema CAPACETE, Weightless Days
