Instead of the usual focus on recent trends, this biennial attempts a critical examination of the impact previous installments, devoted solely to painting, have had on the Corcoran’s collecting and presentation of contemporary art since the series began in 1907. Organized by the institution’s own Linda Simmons (for the period 1907–67) and Terrie Sultan (1969–present), the exhibition will include over 130 of the more than 200 works acquired directly from biennials, by artists ranging from Thomas Eakins and Mary Cassatt to Joan Mitchell, Robert Mangold, Lydia Dona, and Jessica Stockholder. It’s possible, says Sultan, that this retrospective will spark a new approach to successive editions of the biennial.

— Barry Schwabsky