Venice Art Biennale 2017 “Viva Arte Viva” | Core Exhibition at Arsenale

Venice Art Biennale 2017  ” Viva Arte Viva” | Core Exhibition at Arsenale

Continues from; Venice Art Biennale 2017 “Viva Arte Viva” – Core Exhibition at Giardini

While two of the nine trans-pavilions on which the 57th Venice Art Biennale is based – The Pavilion of Artists and Books, and The Pavilion of Joys and Fears – are located in the Central Pavilion at Giardini, the Arsenale accommodates other seven trans-pavilions: The Pavilion of the Common, The Pavilion of the Earth, The Pavilion of Traditions, The Pavilion of the Shamans, The Dionysian Pavilion, The Pavilion of Colours, and The Pavilion of Time and Infinity. Even if each trans-pavilion is a chapter in itself, the continuous flow across the exhibition is not marked by separations or physical breaks.

The Pavilion of the Common, which opens the Arsenale’s exhibition, presents artists who works on the concept of collectivity and to rebuild the very idea of community. The common world must be build at a micro-political level, by creating the conditions for developing equality, friendship, and sharing.

Rasheed Araeen: Zero to Infinity. The Pavilion of the Common. Photo © Inexhibit

Juan Downey: The Circle of Fires. The Pavilion of the Common. Photo © Inexhibit

Lee Mingwei: The mending project. The Pavilion of the Common. Photo by Italo Rondinella, courtesy La Biennale di Venezia

Lee Mingwei: The mending project.The Pavilion of the Common. Photo © Inexhibit

Franz Erhard Walther: die erinnerung untersockelt. The Pavilion of the Common. Photo © Inexhibit

Martin Cordiano: Common Places. The Pavilion of the Common. Photo © Inexhibit

The Pavilion of the Earth is focused on the relationship between man and nature.
Works on view exemplify different approaches to the theme, from the total-artwork immersend in a sort of living space, to works which document the transformation of environment and the exploitation of natural resources, also in an historical perspective such as in the work of Thu Van Tran.

Charles Atlas, Kiss the Day Goodbye, 2015, multimedia installation; Chai. multimedia installation with digital clock, 2017, The Pavilion of the Earth. Photo © Inexhibit

Michel Blazy, Collection de Chaussures, 2015-2017. The Pavilion of the  Earth. Photo © Inexhibit

Thu Van Tran, The Red Rubber (foreground).The Pavilion of the  Earth. Photo © Inexhibit

Koki Tanaka: Of Walking in Unknown, 2017.The Pavilion of the  Earth. Photo © Inexhibit

The Pavilion of Traditions: works on show in this “chapter” illustrate the research by artists who somehow refer to tradition and, though inspiration from the past, find their way toward new values.

Achraf Touloub, Untitled, 2016-2017. The Pavilion of Traditions. Photo © Inexhibit

Francis Upritchard, various works. The Pavilion of Traditions. Photo © Inexhibit

Leonor Antunes, …then we raised the terrain so that I could see out, 2017, site-specific installation. The Pavilion of Traditions. Photo © Inexhibit

Anri Sala, All of a tremble (Encounter I), 2016. The Pavilion of Traditions. Photo © Inexhibit

Yee Sookyung, Translated Vase Nine Dragons in Wonderland. The Pavilion of Traditions. Photos © Inexhibit

The Pavilion of Shamans. Duchamp defined an “shaman artist” who has a “mission” and is stirred by an internal vision. The chapter dedicated to shamans presents works by artists who are also spiritual leaders, and find their reason for being in a today’s time where uncertainty, and the need for care and spirituality are greater than ever.
On the other side, Joy and sense of humor are the elements which mark the The Dionysian Pavilion, which celebrates sensuality and the female body. Music, singing, dance – together with painting and sculpture – are means to access a dimension of more profound sensuality.

Ernesto Neto, Um sagrado lugar (A Sacred place). The Pavilion of Shamans. Photo by Andrea Avezzù. Courtesy: La Biennale di Venezia.

Naufus Ramírez-Figueroa, Third Lung, 2017. The Pavilion of Shamans. Photo © Inexhibit.

Heidi Bucher, Various works, 1974-1978. The Dionysian Pavilion. Photo © Inexhibit

Zilia Sánchez, Las Troyanas, 1987-97.The Dionysian Pavilion. Photo © Inexhibit

The Pavilion of Colors. The back wall of the Corderie is completely filled by an installation of American artist Sheila Hicks who, by stacking hundreds of giant wads made of colored natural fibers, created a space at the same time inviting and estranging. The last chapter, The Pavilion of Time and Infinity, expresses a “new-metaphysical” approach to art through the work of artists – such as Liliana Porter and Alicja Kwade – who investigate the difference between reality and representation, the definition of space-time dimensions, and the coexistence of different “times” in a single piece of art.

Sheila Hicks, Escalade Beyond Chromatic Lands, 2016-2017. The Pavilion of Colors. Photo © Inexhibit.

Liliana Porter, El hombre con el hacha y otras situaciones breves. The Pavilion of Time and Infinity. Photo © Inexhibit

Liu Jianhua, Square. The Pavilion of Time and Infinity. Photo © Inexhibit

Alicja Kwade, WeltenLinie, 2017. The Pavilion of Time and Infinity. Photo © Inexhibit

Alicja Kwade, Pars pro Toto, 2017 (above and cover image). The Pavilion of Time and Infinity. Photo © Inexhibit