SYMPOSIUM: THE ROLE OF BIENNALES IN THE MEDITERRANEAN TODAY
The Mediterranean remains the topic of interest of the 5th edition of the Thessaloniki Biennale. Major events take place on a daily basis, constantly transforming a region that is afflicted by wars, uprisings, social upheaval, impoverishment as well as political and economic instability, with the burning issue of immigration taking centre stage. Organisers of the symposium “The Role of Biennales in the Mediterranean Today” have invited artists, directors and curators from other Biennale exhibitions across the Mediterranean – Northern Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. The Symposium will include a series of lectures, a roundtable and an open discussion, in an attempt to present the current state of affairs, the concerns and the initiatives needed in today’s volatile Mediterranean landscape, which is presently inauspicious for the arts and artistic expression. The ties amongst the institution of the Biennales and museums and universities, their multicultural and intercultural character, the presenting of the diverse roles of the “independent curator”, the artist and the director-manager, the turn of Biennales towards education, and the topics of urban marketing and city branding are among the issues that will be discussed and analysed at the Symposium on the history and development of Biennales and their current role in the Mediterranean.
SYMPOSIUM: THE ROLE OF THE BIENNIAL INSTITUTION IN THE MEDITERRANEAN TODAY
25.09.2015
11:00-17:00 / PAVILION 6, THESSALONIKI INTERNATIONAL FAIR
PROGRAMME
11:00-11:30 REGISTRATION
11:45-12:15 WELCOME SPEECHES & INTRODUCTION TO THE CONFERENCE
Sophia Kaitatzi-Whitlock, Vice-President of the Board of Administration of the SMCA
Maria Tsantsanoglou, Director of the SMCA
Katerina Koskina, Director of the 5th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art
SESSION I
CHAIR: MARIA TSANTSANOGLOU
12:15-12:30 MARIEKE VAN HAL, art historian, founded and directed the Biennial Foundation, Director of the 1st Athens Biennial. THE BIENNIAL, FROM EXHIBITION TO INSTITUTION
12:30-12:45 BERAL MADRA, critic, curator, artistic director of Kuad Gallery, coordinated the 1st and the 2nd Istanbul Biennale.
STRUCTURE AND GOALS OF BIENNALE IN THE AGE OF GEOPOLITICAL CONFLICTS
12:45-13:00 PAOLO COLOMBO, curator, art advisor at the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art/Istanbul, co-curator of the 3rdThessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art.
SENSE OF PLACE
13:00-13:15 KATERINA KOSKINA, art historian, director of the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Director of the 3rd, 4th, 5th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art .THE ROLE OF BIENNIALS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN TODAY: AN ASSESSMENT OF THE THESSALONIKI BIENNALE PROGRAMME “OLD INTERSECTIONS-MAKE IT NEW” 2011-2015
13:15-13:30 DISCUSSION
13:30-14:00 COFFEE BREAK
SESSION ΙΙ
CHAIR: KATERINA KOSKINA
14:00-14:15 ALYA SEBTI, independent curator, curatorial advisor of the Wentrup Gallery, artistic director for the 5th edition of the Marrakech Biennale.
CAN A BIENNALE IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA BECOME A PLATFORM TO ENCOURAGE A SUSTAINABLE AND EQUITABLE ACCESS TO CULTURE? THE EXAMPLES OF THE MARRAKECH BIENNALE V AND CORRELATED CULTURAL PROJECTS
14:15-14:30 GABRIELA SALGADO, independent curator, consultant, currently directing a programme of artistic exchanges for African and Latin American artists.
THE POSSIBILITY OF RADICAL EDUCATION AS A CHOICE AGAINST DYSTOPIA
14:30-14:45 SYRAGO TSIARA, art historian, director of the Center of Contemporary Art of SMCA, co-curator of the 2nd Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art Ιστορικός Τέχνης. ADDRESSING – CREATING COMMUNITIES THROUGH ART: COLLECTIVITY IN THESSALONIKI BIENNALE AND HISTORY ZERO
14:45-15:00 MARIA TSANTSANOGLOU, art historian, director of the State Museum of Contemporary Art, Director of the 2nd Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art. THESSALONIKI BIENNALE OF CONTEMPORARY ART, 1-5: AN ASSESSMENT AND THE FUTURE PERSPECTIVES.
15:00 -17:00 ROUND TABLE. DISCUSSION & CONCLUSION