Tourist! (The Grand Tour)
Exhibition curated by Marie Deparis-Yafil and Arnaud Cohen, part of the international biennial BIENALSUR
What does it mean to be a tourist today? The Grand Tour was originally and for centuries a formative journey undertaken by the European elites youth, inventing the idea of the Orient and shaping the aesthetics of travel. Subsequently, this idea became more democratic, giving rise to mass tourism. Despite wars, terrorism, pandemics, and the need for eco-responsibility, tourism remains at the heart of leisure civilization and is a major economic player. Contemporary artists render these tensions visible, with critical force and often with an ironic distance.
Conceived by Marie Deparis-Yafil, this exhibition embraces the formal rules of Babel Mallorca. Instead of showcasing the works in their physical form, we prioritize videos, works that can be easily transported in a suitcase, or blueback photographic prints of the selected works. This decision for economic moderation reduces the carbon footprint of our exhibitions and the insurance costs, but most importantly, it ensures greater curatorial independence. Thus, Babel Mallorca is not merely a new type of exhibition space envisioned by Arnaud Cohen; it is a Gesamtkunstwerk that aims to be the embassy of a universe yet to be built, inspired by the "Tout-Monde" concept cherished by Édouard Glissant. Through this curatorial platform, Marie Deparis confronts, without censorship and on the same beach, two irreconcilable figures of travel: the nomad from the North versus the migrant from the South, for whom borders have never disappeared.
Exhibited works by:
Pauline Bastard (FRA)
Becquemin & Sagot (FRA)
Delphine Bedel (FRA)
Catherine Burki (FRA)
Arnaud Cohen (PRT/FRA)
Mounir Fatmi (MAR)
Paolo Iommelli (ITA)John Isaacs (GBR)
Sylvie Kaptur-Gintz (FRA)
Farah Khelil (TUN)
Esmeralda Kosmatopoulos (GRC)
MONK (BEL)
Sadek Rahim (ALG)
UNTEL (FRA)ZEVS (FRA)
Brankica Zilovic (SRB)
BIENALSUR https://bienalsur.org/en/page/que-es-bienalsur
An expansive proposal for contemporary art, culture and reflection
Since 2015, from the south of the world we have been organising BIENALSUR, the International Biennial of Contemporary Art of the South conceived by the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero (UNTREF), a public university in Argentina.
It is a different kind of biennial: decentralised, democratic, horizontal and humanistic, embracing the issues of today's world.
From its Km 0 at MUNTREF (Museums of the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero) Hotel de Inmigrantes venue in the City of Buenos Aires, to Tokyo, BIENALSUR maps out a new cartography for contemporary art that spans 18,370 kilometres, simultaneously connecting art spaces, creators, audiences and communities from all continents.
As of 2015, a series of Global South meetings were held that gave rise to a dynamic project rooted in dialogues, exchanges and presentations making up a diverse and sustained public programme. BIENALSUR was subsequently built on this foundation.
The first edition of BIENALSUR was held in 2017, featuring the participation of more than 400 artistsacross approximately 80 venues in 34 cities spanning 16 countries. In 2019, the map extended its reach, encompassing 112 venues in 47 cities in 21 countries. Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic in 2021, the biennial took place in 120 venues across 48 cities in 24 countries of the Americas, Asia and Euro. Over 1800 artists from all over the world participated throughout the first three editions.
Unprecedented in its methodology, BIENALSUR incorporates works and projects that arise from open, free, international calls without pre-established topics. This inclusive approach aims to encourage artists and curators to conceive specific proposals without the constraints of predetermined themes, and to pursue their own explorations.
From the Open Call emerge the itineraries as the primary curatorial axes of each edition. The selection criterion for the projects is the quality of each submission, both in conceptual and aesthetic terms.
BIENALSUR 2023
With a steadfast determination to explore alternative dynamics for art and culture in the pursuit of new logics of artistic and social circulation both locally and globally, BIENALSUR continues to uphold the right to culture and diversity.
Over the course of six months, artists, curators, institutions, and communities from various corners of the world will join forces with growing simultaneity. amplifying their efforts to actively address contemporary challenges.
General Director
Aníbal Y. Jozami
Artistic Director
Diana B. Wechsler
International Curatorial Council BIENALSUR 2023
Enrique Aguerre (URY), Manolo Borja (ESP), Alex Brahim (COL), Estrella de Diego (ESP), Andrés Duprat (ARG), Alexia Fabre (FRA), João Fernandes (PRT), Marta Gili (ESP), Valeria González (ARG), Abdellah Karroum (MAR), Mona Khazindar (SAU), Emma Lavigne (FRA), Bartomeu Mari (ESP), Jose-Carlos Mariategui (PER), Simon Njami (CHE), Nada Shabout (GBR), Nayla Tamraz (LBN), Fabien Danesi (FRA), Eugenio Carmona (ESP), Etienne Bernard (FRA)
