Cymru yn Fenis Wales at Venice 2013

30th March 2012

The Ludoteca

Wales has had a presence at successive Biennales since 2003. In summary these exhibitions have been:

2003

Work by four artists, Simon Pope, Cerith Wyn Evans, Bethan Huws and Paul Seawright, was chosen for the first collateral exhibition of Wales at the Venice Biennale.

2005

In the exhibition Somewhere else Peter Finnemore, Laura Ford and Paul Granjon presented work in the context of the 51st Venice Biennale of Art. In addition to the exhibition at the Ex-Birreria, Giudecca, there was a residency project by Bedwyr Williams, Basta . The project was the result of partnership working between Wales at the Venice Biennale and Cywaith Cymru. Artworks Wales.

2007

'And So It Goes' featured works by Richard Deacon, Merlin James and Heather & Ivan Morrison 2007 marked the most extensive use of the Ex-Birreria site for the exhibition from Wales.

2009

Dyddiau Du/ Dark Days by John Cale. The durational 46 minute split five screen film and sound installation was situated in the Capannone 1 space at the Ex-Birreria site.

2011

Tim Davies. Cymru yn Fenis /Wales in Venice establishes itself in a new venue, the Ludoteca in the Castello district at the top of the Via Garibaldi between the Giardini and Arsenale. The Ludoteca has been confirmed as the location for the Cymru yn Fenis Wales at Venice 2013 Exhibition.

Arts Council of Wales supports the exhibition at the Venice Biennale with the following objectives:

• celebrating the diverse and critically valued work of artists associated with Wales
• offering career opportunities at a significant juncture for participants
• attracting and focusing attention and debate about art in and from Wales, deepening critical discourse
• focusing curatorial interest on the art being produced in Wales, leading to greater exposure of artists from Wales
• giving experiences, aspiration and context to artists and curators in early career (through experience of the Biennale, invigilator programmes, live guides, education work and networking possibilities)
• supporting the developmental context for other gallery enterprises in Wales
• promoting Wales’ visual culture to the Welsh public, pointing up the value of placing contemporary Welsh art in an international context and ensuring the dissemination of the Wales presence in Venice either through a complementary exhibition or other allied activity

Following discussions with the affiliation of Visual Arts and Galleries Wales (VAGW), the Council is taking the following approach to determining the next presentation in Venice in 2013:

We will retain the open call, but restricted for 2013 and for foreseeable further Biennales to an invited list of Galleries and visual arts organisations, the VAGW network, which is made up of the funded gallery sector in Wales in which Arts Council of Wales is already investing.

Furthermore the Council is seeking to develop this partnership model by involving both Amgueddfa Cymru/ National Museum Wales and Artes Mundi in the project via its Advisory Committee.

The aim is to build relationships between the project and a Gallery in Wales and on the international platform of Venice, be able to promote international work of the Gallery and visual arts network in Wales. The exhibition will also provide a platform as appropriate, to flag the next stage of the following year’s Artes Mundi. The period following the showing in Venice will see a more formalised involvement of Amgueddfa Cymru/ National Museum. The Museum is committed to following up the exhibition in some way.

This will be developed dependent on the nature of each exhibition, but could be delivered by exhibition, or purchase or commission or a combination of other means of mediation, related to following through from the Biennale. In this model the host Gallery in Wales would also show the work of the chosen artist or relate its programme in some way to the project in Venice.

Proposals for Wales’s exhibition at the 55^th Venice Biennale are now being sought from the Gallery network, and discussion and presentation will be undertaken by and to the Council’s Cymru yn Fenis Wales at Venice Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee will agree the curatorial/artist proposal from submissions.

Galleries have been asked to submit proposals by April 30^th 2012. The Arts Council will be announcing the decision about the Wales proposal for the 2013 exhibition at the beginning of June.

Any enquiries or information requests concerning the future of Cymru yn Fenis Wales at Venice can be forwarded to David Alston, Arts Director, Arts Council of Wales.

david.alston@artswales.org.uk

07929344857

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