Biennial of Havana: The largest gallery of the world.

By: Martha Sánchez

A group composed of over 100 artists of 44 countries to show their creativity in many urban spaces of the capital in occasion of the 12th Biennial of Havana to be held from May 22 to June 22.

As usual, the Biennial will provide artists of different regions and will also represent those who have not properly been taken into account in their places of birth, noted Jorge Fernández, director of the Contemporary Art Center Wilfredo Lam.

The event organizer explained that encounter will have not a specific venue since it will take place in many places of the capital simultaneously so that the artists are able to create according to the place around and the urban context.

The idea in to turn Havana city into the largest gallery of the whole world, he said. Fernandez will show joy due to the quantity of artists from Europe who have joined in the last editions with the purpose to integrate themselves to the line of the Biennial.

This edition will present creation related to the theme Entre la idea y la experiencia (Between the idea and the experience) because the idea we have seems to be so different regarding the artist real experience, Fernandez stated.

An essential purpose of the encounter in 2015 will be the exhibition of the process of work in the art, marked by the collaboration in the 21 century. For this reason, the event involve scientist, musicians, architects, dancers and professionals of different specialties.

In tune with the contemporary artistic production, the Biennial will try to connect many branches of knowledge besides favoring curatorship workshops and meeting to reflect on architecture, urbanism and other issues.

This edition will open spaces for the development of educational projects and the exhibition of academic researches contributing to the reflection related to the art. For us is very important the energy of the city. Cinemas, parks, squares, museums, common buildings, corners on any streets, all they will host structures of different sizes mixed with the purpose to foster a relation between art and habitat.

 Fernandez also hopes the exhibited works favor questions about those spaces in the city on which the artists create or erect. According to Ruben del Valle, president of the National Council of Plastic Arts, the Biennial should make the art accessible to most diverse publics.

The major exhibition of the event is titled Zona Franca and will carried put in Morro-Cabaña cultural complex while the Pabellon Cuba cultural center in the capital will be the venue for the project titled Entre, dentro, fuera, which has the participation of United States, Bulgaria, Canada and Cuba.

Another attractive proposal will be Estado Solido, a work from a collective of artists including the prizewinner Cuban moviemaker Fernando Pérez, National Cinema Award 2007.

This project links the music and visual making in accordance with the interdisciplinary dialogue proposed by the Biennial, Del Valle said.

Up now 11 artists from Latin America, 9 from the Caribbean, 9 from Africa, 3 from Asia, and other 11 from Belgium, Canada, France, Norway, Finland, Germany, Swiss, United States, Spain and Austria have confirmed their attendance.