This extraordinary catalogue accompanies the 24th Biennale of Sydney and showcases the visionary creations of leading artists from diverse corners of the globe, all within the hallowed halls of Sydney’s most iconic cultural institutions. With the artistic direction led by Cosmin Costinas and Inti Guerrero, the volume proposes celebration as both a method and a source of joy, inspired by legacies of collective resistance and coming together to thrive in the face of injustice.
The book includes works and artists featured in the Biennale as well as additional text and essays by Te Kuru O Te Marama Dewes, Nils-Aslak Valkepää, John Pule, Alleen Jayamanne, Samia Khatun, Greg Dvorak, Nevil Shute, Margaret Cavendish, Eric Michaels, Karlie Noon & Krystal De Napoli, Elyas Alavi, Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, VNS Matrix, Thenmozhi Soundararajah, Amelia Groom and Brontez Purnell.These texts, like the exhibition itself, draw from multiple histories, voices and perspectives, to explore connected thematic threads, from the celebration of the resurgence of First Nations technologies and knowledges, the history of Islam in Australia, to Queer resilience, and the international expression of Carnivale.
Other texts explore the atomic era, a concentrated time of climate alteration through human exploitation, within the context of today’s moment of climate emergency and a refusal to concede to an apocalyptic vision of the future.