Venice Biennale 2019

Venice Biennale 2019 posted: 10/11/2019

by Reinhard Penzel

The 58th International Art Exhibition, titled May You Live In Interesting Times, took place from 11th May to 24th November 2019. The title is a phrase of English invention that has long been mistakenly cited as an ancient Chinese curse that invokes periods of uncertainty, crisis and turmoil; interesting times, exactly as the ones we live in today.

The title of this Exhibition could be interpreted as a sort of curse - stated President Paolo Baratta - where the expression interesting times evokes the idea of challenging or even menacing times, but it could also simply be an invitation to always see and consider the course of human events in their complexity, an invitation, thus, that appears to be particularly important in times when, too often, oversimplification seems to prevail, generated by conformism or fear. And I believe that an exhibition of art is worth our attention, first and foremost, if it intends to present us with art and artists as a decisive challenge to all oversimplifying attitudes.

The monumental sculpture Building Bridges was installed in a basin adjacent to the entrance of the Arsenale, in the Castello District of Venice. Building Bridges is composed of six pairs of monumental hands 15 metres high and 20 metres wide - individually titled Help', Love', Friendship', Faith', Wisdom' and Hope'. The installation engages with the history of Venice as a meeting point of international history and culture.

The joining of hands symbolises our commonality, what we share and our ability to unite with an emphasis on bridging differences in all aspects of life - geographically, spiritually, philosophically, culturally and emotionally. The hands suggest a need for contact beyond self-interest, striving for human collaboration and unity. Quinn uses them to communicate complex emotions through a lexicon of gestures and touch, reflecting an ethos of connection and exchange through the language of art.

By using the Arsenale as a site for installation, the work also draws a connection to the city's history as one of the greatest trading powers in Europe, the Western end of the Silk Road trade route and a huge naval authority. Its position today as a World Heritage City attracting tourists from all nations continues Venice's history as a meeting point of culture, and aligns with Quinn's message of world unity.

The Japan Pavilion - Cosmo-Eggs The Japan Pavilion, designed by Takamasa Yoshizaka, takes on a structure comprising a square floor plan and a skylight in the central roof, a hole in the floor, and four columns spirally arranged along its periphery, bringing to mind Le Corbusier's Museum of Unlimited Growth. Architect Fuminori Nousaku interprets the various elements of this architecture, linking together the collection of works across different genres, and developing a reciprocal relationship between them and the architectural space to create a unified spatial experience.

The title Cosmo-Eggs is derived from the various myths throughout the world concerning the birth of humans and non-human existences from the Cosmic-Egg. Toshiaki Ishikura, an anthropologist who specializes in comparative mythology, references local beliefs, mythology, and folklore related to tsunami in various parts of Asia such as the Ryukyu region and Taiwan to develop a new mythological allegory that reconsiders the relationship between humans and nature.

The starting point of this exhibition: The tsunami boulder artist Motoyuki Shitamichi came across in the Miyako Islands and Yaeyama Islands in Okinawa, which he has continued to photograph over the past several years. These large natural boulders have been washed ashore from beneath the ocean. While they exist within close proximity to everyday human life, some become home to new plant life and colonies for migratory birds.

Cosmo-Eggs. The collaboration between an artist, a composer, an anthropologist, and an architect aims to create a platform from which to consider the ecology where humans and non-humans coexist, as well as questions of where and how we can survive within our world. Four instances of video footage filmed by Motoyuki Shitamichi that capture tsunami boulders' washed ashore from beneath the ocean are accompanied by Taro Yasuno's composition, reminiscent of a bird song consisting of automated sounds performed on recorder flutes, and allegories developed by Toshiaki Ishikura in reference to various local beliefs and folklore related to the tsunami. Fuminori Nousaku was inspired by the architecture of the Japan Pavilion, linking together images, music, and texts to create a unified spatial experience.

A long time ago, sun and moon descended to earth and laid a single egg. A snake came and swallowed the egg, and so sun and moon visited earth once more to leave behind three eggs that they hid: one inside earth, one inside stone, and one inside bamboo. The eggs soon hatched, and born were the ancestors of three islands. Once grown up, they each built a small boat and travelled to different islands: one in the East, one in the West, and one in the North. The tribes of these islands visited each other by boat, and despite occasional fights, they overcame pestilence and poor harvests to live in peace for a long time. Each island passed down its own language, its own music, its own traditions, its own festivals. They each possessed the power to speak with the animals: the earth tribe spoke with the worms and the insects, the stone tribe with the snakes, and the bamboo tribe with the birds.

The installation is made up of video works by artist Motoyuki Shitamichi, music by composer Taro Yasuno, a new mythological story by anthropologist Toshiaki Ishikura, and scenography designed by architect Fuminori Nosaku.

At times

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