Mix and Match at Meditations Biennale

Even with 90 artists from Europe, Asia and the Americas, the third Mediations biennale in Poznan, Poland, is a low-key event. This is less a result of the biennale's location than of its history, as a continuation of the Inner Spaces Festival, the informal gathering of artists, critics and curators initiated in 1993 by artist/curator Tomek Wenderland, now the biennial's director. Founded with the intention to consider globalization from a Central European perspective, the first Mediations biennale in 2008 consisted of some 16 sub-exhibitions, and works by over 240 artists.

This year, four curators—Denise Carvalho (the Americas), Friedhelm Mennekes (Europe), Fumio Nanjo (Asia) & Tomasz Wendland each would interpret the theme "the unknown" [through Oct. 30]. The selected artists were then installed in an integrated installation spread over five sites: a synagogue, a Jesuit Church, Zamek Castle Cultural Centre, the National Museum in Poznan and the Archdiocese Museum. While their interpretations differ widely ranging from the spiritual to the political, the curators share a common aesthetic sensibility—straightforward, emotive and slightly grainy.
 Read More