WIELS @ VENICE 2015
Dialogues between WIELS’ programme and the Venice biennale
Two evenings of presentations by the curatorial team of WIELS with guest artists.
Venue: Palazzo Trevisan degli Ulivi,
Address: Campo S. Agnese, Dorsoduro 810, 30123 Venice, Italy
Directions: Close to Zattere and Academia vaporetto stops
Language: English
Entry: Free
7pm, Thursday 17 September: Hybrid cities
How do cosmopolitan cities – such as Venice and Brussels – function as venues for the creation and presentation of contemporary art? And how do these cities – which have always been sites of trade and exchange – influence art practice today? Or can we even compare two such different cities at all: the one that forever seems unfinished and the other which is intended to be an unchanging open-air museum?
7:00-7:05pm: Dirk Snauwaert (WIELS director) introduces the evening
7:05-7:35pm: Zoë Gray (WIELS senior curator) speaks about her recent exhibition Un-Scene III, providing a snapshot of the Brussels art scene, and about the role of Brussels in the practice of the artists based there.
7:35-8:05pm: Caroline Dumalin (WIELS curator) speaks about the WIELS artist residency programme and the importance of location on practice.
8:05-8:15pm: Short break
8:15-9:00pm: Vincent Meessen (artist) in conversation with Dirk Snauwaert, exploring connections between his research for the Belgian Pavilion in Venice Personne et les Autres, and his project for Atopolis in Mons.
9:00-10:00pm: Drinks and finger food
7pm, Friday 18 September: Mining the relation
WIELS has curated the group exhibition Atopolis as part of Mons 2015 – European Capital of Culture, presenting works that examine the phenomena of circulation, diaspora and cultural dislocation, topics with a strong resonance in Venice (particularly during the period of the biennale). The title of this evening alludes to the ideas of Edouard Glissant, a writer and influential thinker of globalisation, who argues in favour of fluid identities, unhindered exchanges and an ideal cosmopolitan openness, which he calls the 'Relation'.
7:00-7:05pm: Zoë Gray (WIELS senior curator) introduces the evening
7:05-7:35pm: Dirk Snauwaert (WIELS director) speaks about the influence of the ideas of Edouard Glissant on his current exhibition Atopolis.
7:35-8:05pm: Charlotte Friling (Atopolis co-curator) presents a selection of the works produced upon the occasion of Atopolis.
8:05-8:15pm: Short break
8:15-9:00pm: Danai Anesiadou (artist) speaks about her recent work made for Atopolis and about her way of thinking and working.
9:00-10:00pm: Drinks and finger food
In collaboration with Flanders Arts Institute
With the support of Flanders state of the art
