This week, The Guardian looks at the fates of past years’ Serpentine Pavilion commissions, and their destinations after the work is taken down. With most pavilions sold before they are installed, the article offers a look at the shifts in use and context as works appear in the gardens of Indian steel magnates, or used as a beachside restaurant in the Côte d’Azur in France. (more…)
Céleste Boursier-Mougenot, Rêvolutions (2015), French Pavilion, via Sophie Kitching for Art Observed
Running concurrently with the Central Pavilion’s curated exhibition, the respective National Pavilions on view at the Giardini and Arsenale are one of Venice’s defining aspects. Featuring important solo exhibitions for both emerging and career artists, carefully-curated group shows and special projects, each pavilion’s focus allows the international perspective of the Biennale to truly take shape. (more…)
Controversy has struck at the Venice Biennale this year, after the Kenyan government officially denounced its national pavilion at the exhibition this year, and accused the curators awarded to the space of misrepresenting themselves as affiliated with the nation’s arts community while presenting a predominantly Chinese body of artists. “We hereby declare that the artists are in no way Kenyan,” a statement from the Kenyan government states. “Neither through birth nor naturalization and have no business using OUR NAME or flying OUR FLAG at the art Olympics. We demand that the government act by not only stopping the use of the Kenyan name and flying of the Kenyan flag at the Venice Biennale but also demanding the false information be pulled down from all publicity material including the Venice Biennale website.” (more…)
The British Pavilion at next year’s Venice Biennale will spotlight the work of Sarah Lucas, the BBC reports. “Having consistently pushed the limits of her practice, there’s a sense that Lucas – seemingly more active than ever – is coming into her own,” says Gregor Muir, executive director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, and a member of the selection committee. (more…)
Chilean architect Smiljan Radic has won the competition to design the 2014 Serpentine Pavilion in London’s Hyde Park, set to open June 26th. Radic’s design, resembling a series of large stones and pillars, will be semi-translucent, and will host a number of events and site-specific projects. “Radic is a key protagonist of an amazing architectural explosion in Chile,” the Serpentine said in the statement. “While enigmatically archaic, in the tradition of romantic follies, Radic’s designs for the Pavilion also look excitingly futuristic, appearing like an alien space pod that has come to rest on a Neolithic site.” (more…)
Water leaking caused by one of the largest storms to hit Abu Dhabi in 30 years has forced the closure of the second day of the Abu Dhabi Art Fair this weekend, leaving dealers scrambling to protect and maintain works inside the fair’s UAE Pavilion. “Whether the exhibitors have a claim for this on the fair organisers will depend on the terms of the contract between them,” says Christopher Bentley of AXA Art Insurance, although claims have yet to be made. (more…)
Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2013, Designed by Sou Fujimoto, © Sou Fujimoto Architects, Image © 2013 Iwan Baan
Each year, the Serpentine Gallery commissions an outstanding architect who has yet to build on British soil to design a Pavilion in the yards of the gallery in Hyde Park. This year’s pavilion, an impressive cloud of white steel built upon a three-dimensional grid, was conceived by Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto. (more…)
British Pavilion (Installation view) 2013
With the impressively well-stocked selection of pavilions at this year’s Biennale, the United Kingdom has turned to Turner Prize-winning artist Jeremy Deller to represent the country, presenting a complexly layered thematic exhibition titled English Magic. Best known for his restaging of the miners’ strike battle of Orgreave in 2001, his 2009 road trip though America with a car wrecked by a bomb in Iraq, and his 2012 touring bounce house version of Stonehenge, Deller has brought his controversial, political resumé to bear on the largest stage for his country’s creative reputation, creating a visually aggressive criticism of modern wealth.
Jeremy Deller, St. Helier on Fire 2017, British Pavilion 2013
The British Council, which is overseeing Jeremy Deller’s Great Britain pavilion at the Venice Biennale, has removed a banner from the exhibition, which reads “Prince Harry Kills Me,” after concerns that the message may provoke attacks on British troops in the Middle East. “We asked Jeremy to reconsider the banner and poster … on the grounds that it could potentially be misconstrued in environments where the British army is currently deployed and perceived to be disrespectful of those who had lost their lives,” a British Council spokesman said. (more…)
Outside the 55th Venice Biennale
The press preview for the 55th edition of the Venice Biennale, the international art world’s largest stage, kicked off this week, sprawling across the narrow alleyways and watery causeways of the Italian city. Art Observed was on site to cover the opening ceremonies, and has this selection of pictures documenting the first day of the fair.
The Opening Reception, with Paolo Barata and Massimo Gioni (more…)
For the first time in its 84-year history as an independent state, the Vatican City will have its own contemporary art pavilion at the Venice Biennale, Biennale president Paolo Baratta announced yesterday. The news comes as the Catholic Church seeks to move forward from issues associated with the last pope stepping down. “They said they wanted to put into public view the fact that there were other things beyond mere country boundaries, political state boundaries, that united people.” Says Andrea Rose, the British Council Director of Visual Arts, who met with Vatican officials last year. (more…)
