https://youtu.be/3rlfatblqWQ 1968 The story begins in 1968. The year that was defined by a generation who, across the world, proclaimed their desire for freedom. 1968 was also the year that marked the death of the French turned American artist,...
In Venice for the Biennale, the architecture constructs a little and deconstructs a lot: interviews
https://youtu.be/o547_HrrfJE Impactful buildings Architecture these days is facing two major strong and opposing trends. On the one hand it is expressed through its conquest of large-scale sites across the planet, through the construction of...
The colossal Sharjah Biennial : an inventory of new world futures
Global South If anyone mentions Sharjah, the contemporary art fans say: that’s where the Biennial is. People generally don’t know much about this emirate, which is part of the UAE, apart from the fact that it is wedged between the riches...
Hoor Al Qasimi: 8 answers in 1 minute from the Sharjah princess who’s put the Middle East on the global map of the avant-garde
Sharjah Do you know Sharjah? It’s a city in the United Arab Emirates that doesn’t get much media attention. While it may not be as bustling as Dubai with its ski run and flashy nightclubs, nor as moneyed as Abu Dhabi with its Louvre and its oil wells, Sharjah, a city...
Cochin: the most beautiful Biennale on the other side of the world, in India, proclaims that art is not a luxury
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aes8g44lBog With all these artworks in the millions of dollars whose prices become the most memorable thing about them, with all the fairs you could ever want, with all these figurative or abstract paintings flooding the...
Palermo: when a Biennial pales in comparison to a sublime city. The anti-mafia mayor offers his perspective.
When we were little, one of the most exciting activities proposed to us during summer camps or as one of our extracurricular activities was to go on a treasure hunt. These days, the only kinds of treasure hunt on offer to us poor adults with boring schedules are...
Venice Biennale: The post-show interview for the biggest contemporary art event in the world. The artistic director Christine Macel tells all.
She’s the Wonder Woman of the French contemporary art world. Christine Macel (born in 1969) is chief curator at the Centre Pompidou and this year she was the artistic director of the biggest, most newsworthy contemporary art event in the world, the Venice Biennale or...
Istanbul Biennal: Elmgreen & Dragset ‘we have to show solidarity’
Every two years, Istanbul is the destination for one of September’s major contemporary art events. This year it’s Elmgreen & Dragset, the Berlin-based Scandinavian artists, who were chosen to fill the curator’s shoes at the event, which opens to the public on 16...
Venice Biennale (2): the Olympic Games for contemporary art . And the winners are…
Regardless of what people say each time about the overall standard at the Venice Biennale, and despite the growing number of challengers from Sao Paulo to Shanghai, this event remains the queen of the world’s contemporary art shows. With 900 works at the international...
The Venice Biennale under Christine Macel is on a different planet to the art market and home interiors – Viva Arte Viva!
If the role of art in your life amounts to concerns such as whether the painting in your living room matches the colour of your sofa then you should probably steer clear of the 57th Venice Biennale where the largest exhibition, the international pavilion, is ‘curated’...
The Whitney Biennial: Paint strikes back. But how to select a good painting today?
In this age of political upheavals, with possible economic reverberations, the major art market trend is identifying any artists from our recent past that have been unfairly skipped over. It’s a sensible decision. Their careers are already established and their artist...
Venice Biennale: curator Christine Macel opens up in person about her Biennale
The press conference for the Venice Biennale, arguably the world’s most important contemporary art event, takes place three months earlier and is usually quite a confusing affair. Not this time. Here's a foretaste of what the 57th Venice Biennale, curated...