{"id":50614,"date":"2024-07-11T12:07:08","date_gmt":"2024-07-11T11:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/?p=50614"},"modified":"2024-07-11T12:12:23","modified_gmt":"2024-07-11T11:12:23","slug":"the-outsiders-biennale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/the-outsiders-biennale\/","title":{"rendered":"The Outsiders\u2019 Biennale"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>FOREIGNERS everywhere. It\u2019s a good description for Venice during the Biennale, especially in opening week when the art world descends on the city. By making it the theme of the 2024 Biennale, Brazilian curator Adriano Pedrosa is aiming to set in motion a radical train of thought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Yinka-Shonibare-Refugee-Astronaut-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x1280.jpg\" alt=\"Yinka Shonibare, Refugee Astronaut, Arsenale. Image Marco Zorzanello\" class=\"wp-image-50617 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Yinka-Shonibare-Refugee-Astronaut-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x1280.jpg\" alt=\"Yinka Shonibare, Refugee Astronaut, Arsenale. Image Marco Zorzanello\" class=\"wp-image-50617 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Yinka-Shonibare-Refugee-Astronaut-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x1280.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Yinka-Shonibare-Refugee-Astronaut-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--480x600.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Yinka-Shonibare-Refugee-Astronaut-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--120x150.jpg 120w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Yinka-Shonibare-Refugee-Astronaut-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Yinka-Shonibare-Refugee-Astronaut-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Yinka Shonibare, &#8216;Refugee Astronaut&#8217;, Arsenale. Image Marco Zorzanello<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Australia-Pavilion-Archie-Moore-Kith-and-Kin-pic-by-Matteo-de-Mayda1--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Australia Pavilion, Archie Moore, 'Kith and Kin', Image Matteo de Mayda\" class=\"wp-image-50626 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Australia-Pavilion-Archie-Moore-Kith-and-Kin-pic-by-Matteo-de-Mayda1--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Australia Pavilion, Archie Moore, 'Kith and Kin', Image Matteo de Mayda\" class=\"wp-image-50626 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Australia-Pavilion-Archie-Moore-Kith-and-Kin-pic-by-Matteo-de-Mayda1--1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Australia-Pavilion-Archie-Moore-Kith-and-Kin-pic-by-Matteo-de-Mayda1--480x360.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Australia-Pavilion-Archie-Moore-Kith-and-Kin-pic-by-Matteo-de-Mayda1--150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Australia-Pavilion-Archie-Moore-Kith-and-Kin-pic-by-Matteo-de-Mayda1--768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Australia-Pavilion-Archie-Moore-Kith-and-Kin-pic-by-Matteo-de-Mayda1-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Australia Pavilion, Archie Moore, &#8216;Kith and Kin&#8217;. Image Matteo de Mayda<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The Venice Biennale is the oldest and largest festival of contemporary art in the world. It\u2019s a magnet for art lovers, spreading out from its historic bases in the Giardini and Arsenale (the huge former boat-building yard) to embrace the rest of the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At its centre is a vast exhibition in two parts, one in the Central Pavilion in the Giardini, the other in the sweeping halls of the Arsenale Corderie. Pedrosa\u2019s show features a total of 331 artists and collectives from 80 countries, big even by Biennale standards. 86 countries also have their own \u201cpavilions\u201d in the city, and there is a further diverse \u201ccollateral\u201d programme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Rember-Yahuarcani-pic-by-Andrea-Avezzu--1024x507.jpg\" alt=\"Rember Yahuarcani. Image Andrea Avezzu\" class=\"wp-image-50620 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"507\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Rember-Yahuarcani-pic-by-Andrea-Avezzu--1024x507.jpg\" alt=\"Rember Yahuarcani. Image Andrea Avezzu\" class=\"wp-image-50620 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Rember-Yahuarcani-pic-by-Andrea-Avezzu--1024x507.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Rember-Yahuarcani-pic-by-Andrea-Avezzu--480x238.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Rember-Yahuarcani-pic-by-Andrea-Avezzu--150x74.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Rember-Yahuarcani-pic-by-Andrea-Avezzu--768x380.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Rember-Yahuarcani-pic-by-Andrea-Avezzu-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Rember Yahuarcani. Image Andrea Avezzu<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For the first time in more than 20 years, Scotland is not among them, after Creative Scotland decided to \u201cpause\u201d the Scotland + Venice project which has taken a show to every Biennale &#8211; both art and architecture &#8211; since 2003. The loss of this international platform is keenly felt in the Scottish art community and it is to be hoped they will reconsider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p><em>\u2018Pedrosa\u2019s show features a total of 331 artists and collectives from 80 countries, big even by Biennale standards.\u2019<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Dana-Awartani-Come-let-me-heal-your-wounds.-Let-me-mend-your-broken-bones-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Dana Awartani, 'Come, let me heal your wounds. Let me mend your broken bones', Arsenale. Image Marco Zorzanello\" class=\"wp-image-50618 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Dana-Awartani-Come-let-me-heal-your-wounds.-Let-me-mend-your-broken-bones-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Dana Awartani, 'Come, let me heal your wounds. Let me mend your broken bones', Arsenale. Image Marco Zorzanello\" class=\"wp-image-50618 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Dana-Awartani-Come-let-me-heal-your-wounds.-Let-me-mend-your-broken-bones-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Dana-Awartani-Come-let-me-heal-your-wounds.-Let-me-mend-your-broken-bones-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--480x320.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Dana-Awartani-Come-let-me-heal-your-wounds.-Let-me-mend-your-broken-bones-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Dana-Awartani-Come-let-me-heal-your-wounds.-Let-me-mend-your-broken-bones-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Dana-Awartani-Come-let-me-heal-your-wounds.-Let-me-mend-your-broken-bones-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Dana Awartani, &#8216;Come, let me heal your wounds. Let me mend your broken bones&#8217;, Arsenale. Image Marco Zorzanello<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In Foreigners Everywhere, Pedrosa\u2019s modus operandi seems to have been to seek out \u201cforeigners\u201d: refugees, migrants and exiles; indigenous and outsider artists; people from countries under-represented in the art world, most from the Southern hemisphere; those who have been \u201cothered\u201d, for example, by being LGBTQ+. He has invited outsiders in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Across his two shows, you will find indigenous painters from the Amazon, Maori wood relief sculptures, embroidery from Chile, giant pots from Paraguay. There is drawing and painting, from the epic 1936 work <em>Crucifixion of the Soul<\/em>, by British outsider artist Madge Gill, to an equally vast mural painted by trans and cis women in the Aravami Art Project in Bangalore. For the most part, the big names of the contemporary art world are conspicuous by their absence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Installation-by-Mataaho-Collective-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Installation by Mataaho Collective, Arsenale. Image by Marco Zorzanello\" class=\"wp-image-50621 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Installation-by-Mataaho-Collective-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Installation by Mataaho Collective, Arsenale. Image by Marco Zorzanello\" class=\"wp-image-50621 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Installation-by-Mataaho-Collective-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Installation-by-Mataaho-Collective-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--480x320.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Installation-by-Mataaho-Collective-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Installation-by-Mataaho-Collective-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello--768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Installation-by-Mataaho-Collective-Arsenale-pic-by-Marco-Zorzanello-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Installation by Mataaho Collective, Arsenale. Image by Marco Zorzanello<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Painting-by-Louis-Fratino-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--1024x940.jpg\" alt=\"Painting by Louis Fratino. Image Matteo De Mayda\" class=\"wp-image-50622 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"940\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Painting-by-Louis-Fratino-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--1024x940.jpg\" alt=\"Painting by Louis Fratino. Image Matteo De Mayda\" class=\"wp-image-50622 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Painting-by-Louis-Fratino-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--1024x940.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Painting-by-Louis-Fratino-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--480x441.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Painting-by-Louis-Fratino-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--150x138.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Painting-by-Louis-Fratino-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--768x705.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Painting-by-Louis-Fratino-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Painting by Louis Fratino. Image Matteo De Mayda<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Like Cecilia Alemani, curator of the 2022 Biennale, he creates capsule shows-within-a show, \u201cNucleo Storicos\u201d which reflect on the past. One looks at how abstraction was taken up through the Southern hemisphere: it is colourful and interesting. The other two, on portraiture and Italian artists who have made careers abroad, are more mixed in quality.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p><em>\u2018With the emphasis on painting and making rather than installation and film, the whole thing feels more spacious, less frenetic.\u2019<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This has attracted some savage criticism, but the quality of individual works is, perhaps, not the point. Pedrosa is attempting to shake up the art world &#8211; still overwhelmingly Western, privileged and, let\u2019s face it, white &#8211; by putting forward another perspective. He has made these familiar spaces a little less familiar. Who\u2019s feeling like the foreigner now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The paintings of young New York-based artist Louis Fratino exploring queer experience are a real discovery. Korean-American Kang Seung Lee has made a series of delicately beautiful tributes to artists who died of Aids, while Lebanese artist Omar Mismar tells queer stories in mosaics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the effect when you bring all this (and much, much more) together is often befuddling. Pedrosa\u2019s show partly depends on uniting a variety of \u201coutsiders\u201d who have very little in common. There are intriguing juxtapositions in some of the rooms, but overall the works don\u2019t have much to say to each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is, however, genuinely different to the other Biennales I\u2019ve seen. With the emphasis on painting and making rather than installation and film, the whole thing feels more spacious, less frenetic. This, plus the freedom with which Pedrosa mixes the work of living and dead artists, has caused some to query the extent to which this show is really \u201ccontemporary\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Pedrosa\u2019s ethos ripples out into many of the national pavilions. It seems to be in vogue this year to pass on your pavilion to another, worthier project: Denmark\u2019s houses photography from Greenland; The Netherlands hosts an art and land reclamation project from the Democratic Republic of Congo; Poland hosts Ukrainian collective Open Group, who have filmed Ukrainian refugees making the sounds of guns and missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Nucleo-Storico-on-abstract-art-from-the-southern-hemisphere-Central-Pavilion-pic-by-Jacopo-Salvi--1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Nucleo Storico on abstract art from the southern hemisphere, Central Pavilion. Image Jacopo Salvi\" class=\"wp-image-50623 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Nucleo-Storico-on-abstract-art-from-the-southern-hemisphere-Central-Pavilion-pic-by-Jacopo-Salvi--1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Nucleo Storico on abstract art from the southern hemisphere, Central Pavilion. Image Jacopo Salvi\" class=\"wp-image-50623 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Nucleo-Storico-on-abstract-art-from-the-southern-hemisphere-Central-Pavilion-pic-by-Jacopo-Salvi--1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Nucleo-Storico-on-abstract-art-from-the-southern-hemisphere-Central-Pavilion-pic-by-Jacopo-Salvi--480x320.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Nucleo-Storico-on-abstract-art-from-the-southern-hemisphere-Central-Pavilion-pic-by-Jacopo-Salvi--150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Nucleo-Storico-on-abstract-art-from-the-southern-hemisphere-Central-Pavilion-pic-by-Jacopo-Salvi--768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Nucleo-Storico-on-abstract-art-from-the-southern-hemisphere-Central-Pavilion-pic-by-Jacopo-Salvi-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Nucleo Storico on abstract art from the southern hemisphere, Central Pavilion. Image Jacopo Salvi<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Poland-Pavilion-Open-Group-Repeat-After-Me-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--1024x819.jpg\" alt=\"Poland Pavilion, 'Open Group, Repeat After Me'. Image Matteo De Mayda2\" class=\"wp-image-50624 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"819\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Poland-Pavilion-Open-Group-Repeat-After-Me-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--1024x819.jpg\" alt=\"Poland Pavilion, 'Open Group, Repeat After Me'. Image Matteo De Mayda2\" class=\"wp-image-50624 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Poland-Pavilion-Open-Group-Repeat-After-Me-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--1024x819.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Poland-Pavilion-Open-Group-Repeat-After-Me-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--480x384.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Poland-Pavilion-Open-Group-Repeat-After-Me-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--150x120.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Poland-Pavilion-Open-Group-Repeat-After-Me-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2--768x614.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Poland-Pavilion-Open-Group-Repeat-After-Me-pic-by-Matteo-De-Mayda2-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Poland Pavilion, &#8216;Open Group, Repeat After Me&#8217;. Image Matteo De Mayda<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>There are some powerful moments. \u2018Refugee Astronaut\u2019 by British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shinobare strikes exactly the right note at the entrance to the Arsenale, a fragile pilgrim in a strange world. Mataaho Collective\u2019s epic overhead lattice of cargo straps and Dana Awartani\u2019s drapes of mended silks are deeply impressive. The paintings of father and son Santiago and Rember Yahuarcani, from the Uitoto nation of Amazonia, are beautiful and strange. Nil Yalter (winner of a Golden Lion Lifetime Achievement Award) and Bouchra Khalili make powerful work about the migrant experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Spain hosts Peruvian artist Sandra Gamarra, who has created a Migrant Art Gallery, a critique of Spanish art history which is heavy on words and angst. Jeffrey Gibson, the first Native American artist to represent the USA in Venice, works with ultra-bright colours, sound-bite style slogans and giant rainbow-clad figures, which seem to sit a little at odds with the seriousness of the history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Archie Moore, for Australia, who is of Aboriginal heritage, takes the opposite approach. His show, which is entirely in black and white \u2013 a memorial for Aboriginal people who died in state custody and a \u201cfamily tree\u201d going back thousands of years \u2013 won the Golden Lion for best pavilion. Israel\u2019s pavilion remains shuttered, with an armed guard outside, after pro-Palestinian protests in the opening week. A notice pledges to reopen \u201cwhen a ceasefire and hostage release agreement is reached\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/USA-Pavilion-Jeffrey-Gibson-The-Space-in-Which-to-Place-Me3-copy-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"USA Pavilion, Jeffrey Gibson, 'The Space in Which to Place Me'\" class=\"wp-image-50631 lazyload\" style=\"width:1200px;height:auto\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/USA-Pavilion-Jeffrey-Gibson-The-Space-in-Which-to-Place-Me3-copy-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"USA Pavilion, Jeffrey Gibson, 'The Space in Which to Place Me'\" class=\"wp-image-50631 lazyload\" style=\"width:1200px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/USA-Pavilion-Jeffrey-Gibson-The-Space-in-Which-to-Place-Me3-copy-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/USA-Pavilion-Jeffrey-Gibson-The-Space-in-Which-to-Place-Me3-copy-480x320.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/USA-Pavilion-Jeffrey-Gibson-The-Space-in-Which-to-Place-Me3-copy-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/USA-Pavilion-Jeffrey-Gibson-The-Space-in-Which-to-Place-Me3-copy-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/USA-Pavilion-Jeffrey-Gibson-The-Space-in-Which-to-Place-Me3-copy.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>USA Pavilion, Jeffrey Gibson, &#8216;The Space in Which to Place Me&#8217;<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/British-Pavilion-John-Akomfrah-Canto-1-Listening-All-Night-To-The-Rain-pic-by-Jack-Hems_2--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"British Pavilion, John Akomfrah, 'Canto 1 Listening All Night To The Rain'. Image Jack Hems\" class=\"wp-image-50625 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/British-Pavilion-John-Akomfrah-Canto-1-Listening-All-Night-To-The-Rain-pic-by-Jack-Hems_2--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"British Pavilion, John Akomfrah, 'Canto 1 Listening All Night To The Rain'. Image Jack Hems\" class=\"wp-image-50625 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/British-Pavilion-John-Akomfrah-Canto-1-Listening-All-Night-To-The-Rain-pic-by-Jack-Hems_2--1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/British-Pavilion-John-Akomfrah-Canto-1-Listening-All-Night-To-The-Rain-pic-by-Jack-Hems_2--480x360.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/British-Pavilion-John-Akomfrah-Canto-1-Listening-All-Night-To-The-Rain-pic-by-Jack-Hems_2--150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/British-Pavilion-John-Akomfrah-Canto-1-Listening-All-Night-To-The-Rain-pic-by-Jack-Hems_2--768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/British-Pavilion-John-Akomfrah-Canto-1-Listening-All-Night-To-The-Rain-pic-by-Jack-Hems_2-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>British Pavilion, John Akomfrah, &#8216;Canto 1 Listening All Night To The Rain&#8217;. Image Jack Hems<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>John Akomfrah, at the British pavilion, makes the most ambitious work of his long career &#8211; a suite of nine sound and multiscreen film installations which occupy every inch of the space from the basement to the imposing classical frontage. It\u2019s technically impressive, but the sheer scope of what he tackles &#8211; colonialism, forced migration, climate change, landscape, queer rights and more &#8211; leaves the viewer in danger of being overwhelmed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p><em>\u2018Zhanna Kadyrova\u2019s Russian Contemporary Baroque is a working pipe organ made (in part) with metal from Russian missiles used to bomb Ukraine, a true swords-to-ploughshares moment\u2019<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s the thing about Venice: you can never take it all in. A few personal highlights, then: Aleksandar Deni?\u2019s imagining (for Serbia) of colonial Europe as a kind of broken down theme park; the delicate paintings of people between work and rest by Romania\u2019s Serban Savu; Pablo Delano\u2019s exploration of US colonialism in Puerto Rico and the tiny landscapes of Austrian outsider artist Leopold Strobl (both in the Central Pavilion); Bulgaria\u2019s off-site show based on the testimonies of survivors of a Communist forced labour camp which only closed in 1989.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Otobong-Nkanga-Unearthed-Sunlight-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Otobong Nkanga, 'Unearthed Sunlight', From Ukraine, Dare to Dream\" class=\"wp-image-50627 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Otobong-Nkanga-Unearthed-Sunlight-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Otobong Nkanga, 'Unearthed Sunlight', From Ukraine, Dare to Dream\" class=\"wp-image-50627 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Otobong-Nkanga-Unearthed-Sunlight-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Otobong-Nkanga-Unearthed-Sunlight-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--480x360.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Otobong-Nkanga-Unearthed-Sunlight-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Otobong-Nkanga-Unearthed-Sunlight-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Otobong-Nkanga-Unearthed-Sunlight-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Otobong Nkanga, &#8216;Unearthed Sunlight&#8217;, From Ukraine: Dare to Dream<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>And the beautifully curated collateral show From Ukraine: Dare to Dream, in Palazzo Contarini Polignac on the Grand Canal, supported by the Pinchuk Foundation, which brings together Ukrainian and non-Ukrainian artists in a thoughtful and ultimately uplifting imagining of the future. Shilpa Gupta\u2019s chorus of protest songs, Otobong Nkanga\u2019s monumental tapestry and Yarema Malashchuk\u2019s tender film work about children waking up are just some of the highlights here. Zhanna Kadyrova\u2019s <em>Russian Contemporary Baroque<\/em> is a working pipe organ made (in part) with metal from Russian missiles used to bomb Ukraine, a true swords-to-ploughshares moment, and a reminder of the transformative power of art.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Zhanna-Kadyrova-Russian-Contemporary-Baroque-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Zhanna Kadyrova, 'Russian Contemporary Baroque', from 'Ukraine, Dare to Dream'\" class=\"wp-image-50628 lazyload\"\/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Zhanna-Kadyrova-Russian-Contemporary-Baroque-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Zhanna Kadyrova, 'Russian Contemporary Baroque', from 'Ukraine, Dare to Dream'\" class=\"wp-image-50628 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Zhanna-Kadyrova-Russian-Contemporary-Baroque-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Zhanna-Kadyrova-Russian-Contemporary-Baroque-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--480x360.jpg 480w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Zhanna-Kadyrova-Russian-Contemporary-Baroque-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Zhanna-Kadyrova-Russian-Contemporary-Baroque-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream--768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Zhanna-Kadyrova-Russian-Contemporary-Baroque-in-From-Ukraine-Dare-to-Dream-.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Zhanna Kadyrova, &#8216;Russian Contemporary Baroque&#8217;, From Ukraine: Dare to Dream<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>:: The 60th International Venice Biennale runs until Nov 24, information at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.labiennale.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.labiennale.org<\/a>, <em>From Ukraine: Dare to Dream<\/em> at Palazzo Contarini Polignac ends Aug 1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s no Scottish exhibition at this year\u2019s Venice Biennale, but there is a radical attempt to reverse the notion of outsiders and insiders in the art world. Susan Mansfield reports.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":101036,"featured_media":50616,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2056],"tags":[1638,74],"topic":[],"class_list":["post-50614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-subject-matter","tag-biennale","tag-venice"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50614","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/101036"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50614"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50614\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50616"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50614"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artmag.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=50614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}