2006 Whitney Biennial

There must be a mistake! The Whitney Museum of American Art has announced the artists who will be participating in the 2006 Biennial, entitled Day For Night, but they forgot to add my name. Must be a typo: I’ll give them a call.

The co-curators for this event are Chrissie Iles, a Curator of Contemporary Art at the Whitney, and Philippe Vergne, Deputy Director and Chief Curator at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis.

"Through the curatorial lens of the Biennial,” said curator Chrissie Iles, “’Day for Night’ explores the artifice of American culture in what could be described as a pre-Enlightenment moment, in which culture is preoccupied with the irrational, the religious, the dark, the erotic, and the violent, filtered through a sense of flawed beauty. This reflective, restless mood is not unique to the United States; its presence across both America and Europe suggests a shift in the accepted values that have formed the basis of 20th-century Western culture.

As always there are several familiar names on the list, but many new to me. The biennial is a huge career boost for artists, a grand coming-out party. Often criticized for being a mosh pit (OK, that's my phrase) for art, nevertheless it's a must-see event, to get a grasp of some of the directions in contemporary art; there are always surprises.

The exhibit opens to the public on March 2nd and runs through May 28th. Ionarts will be there for the press preview and boxed lunch.