With the character of an art laboratory

»The strong presence of foxes in the Berlin cityscape is one of the starting points for thinking of the 13th Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art as an exploration of ephemerality. [...] As a curatorial basis, this concept takes hold on two levels of the emerging Biennale. First, we are slowly moving away from the notion of minorities in general. [...] Instead, this biennial seeks a kind of encounter rooted in the re-establishment of borders and spaces of dignity. [...] Secondly, we reject any preconceived decision about what a work of art is, or where and under what circumstances it may take place«, says curator Zasha Colah, explaining the concept of the 13th Berlin Biennale. Here, artistic and political positions are presented independently of the art market in order to break new ground and make the unknown tangible. Traditionally, the Biennale always takes place at different locations in Berlin. The artworks of the current edition can be seen from June 14 to September 14 at KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Sophiensæle, Hamburger Bahnhof and the former Lehrter Straße courthouse.

The Berlin Biennale was founded in the 1990s to offer contemporary art more and, above all, independent presentation spaces. The aim of the Biennale is to enable a representative, international exhibition of contemporary art in Berlin every two years in order to also show previously less established positions by artists of the younger generation. Numerous well-known artists took part in the Biennale at the beginning of their careers, where the presentation contributed to their international breakthrough. At the 1st Berlin Biennale in 1998, for example, works by Olafur Eliasson, Pipilotti Rist, Ugo Rondinone and Wolfgang Tillmans were shown. The curators also include great names in their field, with Ute Meta Bauer and Adam Szymczyk responsible for the 3rd (2004) and 5th (2008) editions, respectively.