Venice Biennale (E-Biennale) Preservation Archive

This ongoing archive is comprised of preservation copies of electronic image and document files produced to accompany the Venice Biennale 2009-2011. Materials consist of press kits describing exhibitions at various national pavilions, collateral events, and Biennale related games and computer applications. Online websites, flash drives, computer discs, and streaming video provided the contents for this collection.

New Venice Biennale e-materials include:

The 2011 Pavilion of Bangladesh entitled “Parables” represents the first participation of the nation in the Venice Biennale International Art Exhibit. The 66 page press release demonstrates the number of people involved in making the participation happen and includes an overview of Bangladesh art history as well as biographies and images of works by the five contributing artists. Another exhibition of interest is the exhibition in the Australian Pavilion titled “The Golden Thread” by artist Hany Armanious whose method of casting and choice of material creates unique objects of art. Exploration of performance art can be seen in national pavilions exhibitions such as Croatia titled “One Needs to Live Self-Confidently... Watching” and Russia “Empty Zones”. Though the exhibits differ greatly both Pavilions include the work of former soviet artists Tomislav Gotovac and Andrei Monastyrski and the art companies they created/inspired BADco and Collective Actions.

The 2011 Pavilion of Venezuela by the three artists Francisco Bassim, Yoshi, and Clemencia Labin titled “Spaces” aims to represent a pluralistic viewpoint of society. The three artists featured come from different generations and disciplines, yet the project formulates complex relations between the artists and their vision of space.

Another exhibition of interest is the Pavilion of Latvia by Kristaps Ģelzis titled "Artificial Peace (Contemporary Landscape)”.  This work uses luminescent water-based acrylic paints in order to portray the striking daily transitions from dawn to day to sundown to night. The exhibition of the Republic of Chile by Fernando Prats titled “Gran Sur” features images of two natural disasters in Chile: the 2008-2009 volcanic eruption in Chaiten and the 2010 Chilean earthquake, as well as a neon letters installation aiming to revive the advertisement by Sir Ernest Shackleton when he recruited men for his Antarctic trip.

Also of interest is the exhibition of the Pavilion of Serbia titled “Light and Darkness of Symbols” by Dragoljub Todosijević-Raša, which focuses on issues such as mythology, religion and power. The Pavilion of Montenegro features the exhibit by Marina Abramovic titled “The Fridge factory and Clear Waters.” This exhibit focuses on the transformation of the Yugoslavian socialist created Obod refrigerator factory into the Marina Abramovic Community Center Obod Centinje which will be a place for the production, presentation, and distribution of artworks.

Of particular note from the Biennale 2009 is a first time collaboration between the Danish and the Nordic Pavilions.  The pavilion is re-imagined as a ”neighborhood” by the curatorial duo Elmgreen & Draget with contributions from twenty-four international artists and artist groups.  The press kit includes a full listing of the art work and 72 image files of the installation.

For the Dutch pavilion artist Fiona Tan developed a project in which she brings together three films that raise critical questions about the origins of contemporary views on globalism. The press kit includes full biographies of the artist and curator as well as several film stills.

From the 2011 Biennale the young and versatile artist Markus Schinwald represents Austria by engaging with the architectural landmark pavilion designed by Joseph Hoffman in 1934. Markus Schinwald has uses spatial constriction to creat spatial expansion -- a paradox pervading his artistic oeuvre. The press kit documents all the performances, films and sculptures that comprise the installation.

This collection is limited to onsite access