Thirty-three artists, creatives and collectives will participate in the 22nd Biennale of Sydney (2020), titled ‘NIRIN’.
The exhibition will be presented free to the public from Saturday, 14 March to Monday, 8 June 2020 at the Art Gallery of NSW, Artspace, Campbelltown Arts Centre, Cockatoo Island, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia and the National Art School in Sydney.
Barbara McGrady, Sister Girls stylin up, Mardi Gras, 2013
Reflecting on the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages, ‘NIRIN’ is an important time to advocate for First Nation languages in the mainstream. Meaning edge, NIRIN is a word of Brook Andrew’s mother’s Nation, the Wiradjuri people of western New South Wales.
‘NIRIN is not a periphery, it is our centre, and it expresses dynamic existing and ancient practices that speak loudly. NIRIN decentres, challenges and transforms dominant narratives, such as the 2020 Captain Cook anniversary in Australia and reorients Western mapping, shining a light on sites of being that are often ignored or rendered invisible. NIRIN is an inspirational journey driven by stories and grass-root practices, realised through twisting perceptions, moments of transition and a sense of being in the world that is interconnected,’ says Andrew.
Seven themes inspire NIRIN: DHAAGUN (Earth: Sovereignty and Working Together); BAGARAY-BANG (Healing); YIRAWY–DHURAY (Yam-Connection: Food); GURRAY (Transformation); MURIGUWAL GIILAND (Different Stories); NGAWAAL-GUYUNGAN (Powerful-Ideas: The Power of Objects); and BILA (River: Environment).
L to R: Léuli Eshrãghi, Jo-Anne Birnie-Danzker (Director and CEO BOS), Kylie Kwong, Barbara McGrady, Gina Athena Ulysse, S J Norman, Lhola Amira, Tony Albert, Nicholas Galanin, Lisa Reihana, Brook Andrew (Artistic Director BOS 2020), Katarina Matiasek, Arthur Jafa, and Latai Taumoepeau. Photograph: Joshua Morrison
The 33 participants in the 22nd Biennale of Sydney are;
Australian artists: Tony Albert, Blacktown Native Institution, Eric Bridgeman, Léuli Eshrãghi, Kylie Kwong, Barbara McGrady, The Mulka Project, S.J Norman and Latai Taumoepeau.
International artists: Maria Thereza Alves, Lhola Amira, Sammy Baloji, Huma Bhabha, Anna Boghiguian, Victoria Santa Cruz, Jes Fan, Nicholas Galanin, Fátima Rodrigo Gonzales, Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Arthur Jafa, Hannah Catherine Jones, Bronwyn Katz, Mayunkiki, Ibrahim Mahama, Teresa Margolles, Misheck Masamvu, Katarina Matiasek, Jota Mombaça, Prof Sir Zanele Muholi, Taqralik Partridge, Laure Prouvost, Lisa Reihana and Gina Athena Ulysse.
For further information on the Biennale of Sydney, please visit biennaleofsydney.art
