2024 Art Biennale: Strangers Everywhere
The 60th International Art Exhibition, curated by Adriano Pedrosa, will be open to the public from Saturday, April 20th to Sunday, November 24th, at the Giardini and the Arsenale. The Exhibition will be divided between the Central Pavilion at the Giardini and the Arsenale into two distinct nuclei: the Contemporary Nucleus and the Historical Nucleus. As a guiding principle, the 2024 Art Biennale has favored artists who have never before participated in the International Exhibition.
The title “Strangers Everywhere – Foreigners Everywhere” is derived from a series of works created since 2004 by the collective Claire Fontaine, born in Paris and based in Palermo. These works consist of neon sculptures of various colors featuring the words “Strangers Everywhere” in different languages. The expression was taken from the name of a Turin-based collective that in the early 2000s fought against racism and xenophobia in Italy.
“The expression Strangers Everywhere,” explains Adriano Pedrosa, “has more than one meaning. Firstly, it aims to convey that wherever one goes and wherever one finds oneself, strangers will always be encountered: they/ we are everywhere. Secondly, regardless of one’s location, deep down one is always truly a stranger.”
The queer artist, who navigates within different sexualities and genders and is often persecuted or marginalized; the outsider artist, who finds themselves on the fringes of the art world, much like the self-taught or so-called folk or popular artist; the indigenous artist, often treated as a stranger in their own land. The production of these four subjects will constitute the Contemporary Nucleus. The Historical Nucleus, on the other hand, includes three rooms in the Central Pavilion: the room titled Portraits, the room dedicated to Abstractions, and a third room dedicated to the Italian artistic diaspora throughout the 20th century.
The Exhibition will be accompanied by 88 National Participations in the historic Pavilions at the Giardini, the Arsenale, and the historic center of Venice. Four countries are participating for the first time in the Art Biennale: the Republic of Benin, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, and the United Republic of Tanzania. Nicaragua, the Republic of Panama, and Senegal are participating for the first time with their own pavilions. The Italian Pavilion is located at the Tese delle Vergini in the Arsenale.
NB: From Terme Euganee station to Venice Santa Lucia, a train departs every hour, at an average cost of 5.65 euros and with an average train journey of 42 minutes.
- The 60th International Art Exhibition, curated by Adriano Pedrosa, will be open to the public from Saturday, April 20th to Sunday, November 24th, at the Giardini and the Arsenale
- The 52nd International Theatre Festival will take place from June 15th to June 30th, 2024, under the direction of Stefano Ricci and Gianni Forte: featuring performances and events with the most important figures in contemporary theater, as well as productions within the framework of the Biennale College Theatre, the educational project dedicated to young artists.
- The 18th International Festival of Contemporary Dance will take place from July 18th to August 3rd, 2024, directed by Wayne McGregor. The program includes numerous daily events with soloists and international companies, along with the activities of the Biennale College Dance dedicated to training projects that become an integral part of the Festival’s program.
- The 81st International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art is organized by the Venice Biennale and directed by Alberto Barbera; it will take place at the Lido di Venice from August 28th to September 7th, 2024.
- The 68th International Festival of Contemporary Music will take place from September 26th to October 11th, 2024, directed by Lucia Ronchetti. The program includes numerous daily events with soloists and international ensembles.
