International News Digest
“MAKING WORLDS” AT THE VENICE BIENNALE
What can we expect at the next Venice Biennale? Daniel Birnbaum, artistic director of the fifty-third edition, unveiled some details at a meeting last week in Venice with representatives of countries participating in the event. According to a press release, the next Biennale will be called “Making Worlds” and appears in the official title in seven languages: “Fare Mondi // Making Worlds // Bantin Duniyan // 制造世界 // Weltenmachen // Construire des Mondes // Fazer Mundos.”
In his statement, Birnbaum noted that the exhibition will not be divided into sections, but rather will weave at least three themes into a comprehensive whole. The first—proximity to the processes of art production—takes the exhibition closer to the sites of creation and education, such as the studio and the workshop, than the traditional museum show. “Some of the works,” noted Birnbaum, “will represent worlds in the making. A work of art is more than an object, more than a commodity. It represents a vision of the world, and if taken seriously it can be seen as a way of ‘worldmaking.’”
The second theme covers the relationship between key artists and successive generations. “A number of historical reference points will anchor the exhibition,” said Birnbaum. “These artistic roots are still active, productive. They give energy to the branches of the tree of art, and perhaps also to that which emerges today, to the ‘sprouts.’ I would like to explore strings of inspiration that involve several generations and to display the roots as well as the branches that grow into a future not yet defined.”
Finally, Birnbaum plans to explore the more traditional media of drawing and painting. This third theme reflects recent developments as well as the presence of videos and installations in the more recent editions of the Biennale. “The emphasis on the creative process and on things in the making will not exclude works in classical media,” he added.
Paolo Baratta, president of the Biennale, also made a few announcements. The Historic Archive of the Contemporary Arts will be moved to the Pastor Wing of the Italian Pavilion in the Giardini. This wing will also become a site for educational activities, including workshops, seminars, and meetings. More room will be set aside for artists to work, while the front of the Italian Pavilion will be getting a bookshop, as well as a cafeteria and bar.
Baratta also welcomed countries that will be participating for the first time: Andorra, Gabon, Montenegro, Pakistan, the Principality of Monaco, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates. Last edition’s newcomers—Iran, Morocco, New Zealand, and San Marino—will be returning. Baratta invited all of the participating countries to open their pavilions for the rest of the year, beyond the November 22 closing date. The fifty-third Venice Biennale opens June 7.
DEUTSCHE BANK BACKS OUT OF ART COLOGNE AND VENICE BIENNALE
Deutsche Bank has cut back on financing the arts in Germany. As the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung’s Swantje Karich reports, the bank will no longer be the main sponsor for Art Cologne and has also announced an end to financing the German pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Karich wonders whether the decision was made in response to the financial crisis or was simply a reaction to the dwindling significance of the Cologne fair, especially since the bank just agreed to continue its support of the Frieze Art Fair in London. In an interview with Artnet, a Deutsche Bank representative insisted the bank was not rescinding its support for the arts. “We are not abandoning our engagement with art—on the contrary,” said the bank’s representative, Klaus Winker. “Art belongs to the five key fields in our corporate social-responsibility plan. But that doesn’t mean that we always want to leave everything here the way it was.”
HEZBOLLAH AGAINST GEHRY MUSEUM IN JERUSALEM
The Lebanese-based organization Hezbollah has denounced an Israeli project to build a museum on the site of a Muslim cemetery in west Jerusalem. According to Agence France-Presse, the movement spoke against “the profanation of a historical Muslim cemetery in occupied Jerusalem, a profanation authorized by the [Israeli] enemy, which has allowed an American company to build a museum on the site.” Calling on Arab countries, Muslims, and the international community to protest the project, Hezbollah added that Israel does not have the right to “change the Palestinian identity of the Holy City.” The museum, which has been designed by Frank Gehry, is to be dedicated to promoting tolerance among peoples. Last week, the Supreme Court of Israel decided to give the Museum of Tolerance the go-ahead. In 2006, in response to protests from Muslim organizations, the court put a stop to construction at the site. The estimated cost of the project is $150 million. The Palestinian mufti of Jerusalem, Sheik Mohammad Hussein, also denounced “a serious decision” by the Israeli Supreme Court and noted that the building will destroy a Muslim holy site.
CHRISTOPH SCHLINGENSIEF'S AFRICAN FESTIVAL HALL
The German director Christoph Schlingensief is planning to create a festival hall in Africa. As the Süddeutsche Zeitung reports, Schlingensief made the announcement this past weekend at the multimedia event “Fressen oder Fliegen” (Eat or Fly) at Berlin’s Hebbel Theater. The hall will be available to both local and foreign artists, although there was no word on which African country Schlingensief has chosen. Klaus-Dieter Lehmann, president of the Goethe Institute, expressed support for the project. But there may be some clues to the exact location. At the “Fressen oder Fliegen” event, Schlingensief will be screening The African Twin Towers, a film that was shot in Namibia and that features texts by Nobel laureate Elfriede Jelinek and music by Patti Smith. The film tells “the story of a megalomaniac theater director who wants to film a September 11 story in a former German colony in Namibia.”
PICASSO REMOVED FROM AUCTION
At least one masterpiece was missing from Sotheby’s Impressionist and modern art auction this week in New York. As Agence France-Presse reports, a painting by Picasso—Arlequin, 1909, which was expected to capture more than thirty million dollars—was removed from the sale by its owner. No word on whether other owners backed out of the sale.
KOONS’S MARKET VISION
Jeff Koons, whose solo exhibition just opened at Berlin’s Neue Nationalgalerie, spoke with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung’s Lisa Zeitz about the art market. Koons, an avid collector of old masters, has no idea whether the November auctions will be a success, even for his own works. “I always have the feeling that my works should play an even bigger role,” Koons told the paper. “But that’s probably a very natural reaction which all artists feel.” While Koons doesn’t mind seeing his work auctioned off, the artist refrains from making bids. “Usually, I think, ‘Oh, I’d love to have that!’ But I never buy back my own work.” Koons has a few words about the impact of the current financial crisis on the art market. “You know, all markets are like waves,” Koons told Zeitz. “They go up and down. I have no idea how values will play out. I am sure that the value and the things will go with each other. But if you consider who has maintained wealth for a long time, it’s the people who invested in art and real estate.”
