On the occasion of the 14th International Architecture Biennale in Venice, curated this year by Rem Koolhaas, the Lisson Gallery and Berengo Studio present an exhibition of sculpture and installation that goes beyond the museum or gallery space, addressing instead the complex spheres of the public realm and the built environment. By existing beyond the walls, public art can help define the character of its location, either functioning harmoniously or in dialogue with the architecture or landscape it inhabits. As experienced commissioners of large-scale contemporary art, curators from the Lisson Gallery, in association with Berengo Studio, are displaying a range of major pieces by 19 artists, both inside and outside the historic Venetian Palazzo Franchetti.
The show includes models, sculptures, drawings and projects by Anish Kapoor, Ai Weiwei, Daniel Buren, Lawrence Weiner, Shirazeh Houshiary and Lee Ufan, among others, all of whom have made significant contributions to art in the public domain through works that challenge, complement or elucidate their surroundings. In turn, these proposals, situations and sculptures – some unrealised, some temporary, some permanent – should allow us to better appreciate, contemplate and understand the world around us.
The full list of artists included in the show and in the laboratory section is: Ai Weiwei, Daniel Buren, Tony Cragg, Richard Deacon, Spencer Finch, Dan Graham, Shirazeh Houshiary, Anish Kapoor, Richard Long, Tatsuo Miyajima, Julian Opie, Pedro Reyes, Santiago Sierra, Lee Ufan, Koen Vanmechelen, Joana Vasconcelos, Lawrence Weiner, Richard Wentworth, Tokujin Yoshioka.
Genius Loci — Spirit of Place
7 June – 23 November 2014
Palazzo Franchetti, Venice, Italy
