Well, I can safely say that Pierre Huyghe’s “A Forest of Lines”, for which the concert hall of Sydney Opera House was turned into an indoor rainforest, will be remembered as one of the highlights of the biennale. For some people the attraction of “A Forest of Lines” was the obvious novelty value of the installation and, for others, the attraction was the opportunity to experience an amazing work of art by a world renowned artist. Although I am extremely glad that so many people (over 6000) came to view the installation, I can’t help but wonder how many people really appreciated the artistic value of the work or how many people actually appreciated the amount of work and talent that went into its creation. I often fear that the artistic integrity and value of works such as “A Forest of Lines” is overshadowed by the novelty value, especially when the work is not presented in a museum or gallery context. As an example of what I am getting at, while I was walking through the forest I heard a lady say “what is the point of this”. Although I would like to think that this lady would have gone home and researched the artist and his work, I am pretty certain that she would have been content with the novelty value and left her curiosity unsatisfied.

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If I was to tell you that I spent last Sunday painting the interior walls of the lobby of the Art Gallery of New South Wales you would probably come to the logical conclusion that I was some sort of interior decorator. Many of the people who were at the Art Gallery of New South Wales on Sunday, and saw me dressed in white overalls with paint roller in hand, came to this exact conclusion. If you were one of the people who came up to me and asked what I was doing, as many people did, I would have told you that I was taking part in a conceptual installation project by the innovative Bulgarian Artist Nedko Solakov, titled A Life (Black and White). Basically, what this project involves is two workers (one of whom paints in white and the other in black) continuously and simultaneously repainting the walls of the exhibition space round and round in an endless loop. At any one time half the wall space is painted white and half is painted black as each of the workers moves continuously around the space painting over the other worker’s colour – black over white over black over white and so on…

My original enthusiasm for the project was dampened slightly by the fact that I had to get out of bed at 7am on Sunday morning, thanks partly to CityRail conducting track work on my line. However, by the time I arrived at the Art Gallery, (on time) after downing a large cup of coffee, my original enthusiasm had returned, and then some. More

Since its inauguration in 1973, the Biennale of Sydney has proliferated upon the interests of an increasingly decentralised art world. The Biennale has contributed to transforming Sydney into a hub for culture and its various manifestations. The continuous emergence of large scale international exhibitions in recent times has evoked a critical commentary which attempts to abash these events as subjects of ‘Biennale Syndrome’, yet in the fervent fiscal climate of Sydney, where art-talk is often centred around the achievements of commercial galleries and auction houses, the Biennale is the antithesis of a ‘trip to the mall’. The variety of artistic practices that culminate the work exhibited in the Biennale of Sydney do not necessarily resemble those which hang on commercial gallery walls, nor those, piled together, ‘salon style’ at auction previews. A number artistic events of an alternative value, that cannot be commodified, have been amongst the most impressive in this Biennale. More

As the first week of the Biennale drew to a close, a small group of weary Biennale pilgrims embarked on a journey known as the Tour of Beauty, operated by artist collaborative Squat Space. The tour was not formally organised by the Biennale of Sydney, instead it was an event held in conjunction with the exhibition Concrete Culture*.

Squat Space described themselves as a group of ‘artists and activists engaged with the politics and pleasures of space in the city, a spaceless organisation [who] organise events, co-ordinate projects, and host websites’ ( www.squatspace.com ). They have now organised over fifteen tours around the Redfern / Waterloo areas of Sydney’s inner city and in doing so, have significantly contributed to a growing awareness within the community of the problems and challenges concerning these areas’ locale and inhabitants. More

Having met Dan Graham in person for the first time when escorting him to some meetings during his stay in Sydney, it was an absolute dream to see him up on stage at the Museum of Contemporary Art. This was a fascinating experience for many reasons, not only witnessing the architectural and social theories that Mr. Graham explores but his relationship to Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev as an inspiration in her curatorial career.

The nice thing about this as a young artist/curator/writer/whatever (similar to a model/actress/whatever but slightly more academic) is to see that people you admire started off as young and enthusiastic and in awe of someone else. Not to be corny in relating this to the 2008 theme but it is a bit circular, as the student becomes the teacher. More