Starting May 13th and running through to the end of November, the Venice Biennale is famed for attracting many of the world’s most respected artists. This year’s three most anticipated exhibits include Jaffa Venice Light Boxes, Dapunta Hyang: Transmission Of Knowledge and The Biography of the Forgotten.
Jaffa Venice Light Boxes
In partnership with The Farkash Gallery, Israeli artist Ariela Wertheimer will be making her debut at Venice Art Biennale. Ariela will present her highly anticipated Jaffa Venice Light Boxes, curated by Aaron Farkash of The Farkash Gallery in Tel Aviv. The exhibition is comprised of complex light boxes, which reflect our lives, in a variety of colors with a large chandelier in the center of the space. Each box reflects the story of a character trapped in their own small or large prison, from the past or present, with a mirror included for self-reflection.
Dapunta Hyang: Transmission Of Knowledge
Singaporean artist Zai Kuning will be presenting a multi-disciplinary work titled Dapunta Hyang: Transmission Of Knowledge, which will be comprised of a 17 meter-long ship made from rattan, beeswax and string as the exhibition’s center piece.
The project which has had various permutations exhibited at different locations such as the Esplanade, Ota Fine Arts and LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore and Palais de Tokyo in Paris, looks at the forgotten histories of the sea people of the Riau Archipelago. The exhibit touches on the history of the pre-Islamic Srivijaya Empire and the story of Dapunta Hyang, the first Malay king. It will also include a series of photographs of living performers of the traditional dance-theatre form of Mak Yong, in collaboration with Thai photographer Wichai Juntavaro.
The Biography of the Forgotten
Nigerian artist, Victor Ehikhamenor, will present large-scale installations fusing abstract shapes with traditional sculpture, curated by Adenrele Sonariwo and formed by an investment in classical Benin art, which has effects of colonialism on cultural heritage. The exhibition pays homage to those that came before us and their contributions to the art world, from the classicists to the modernists.
