From July 15 to October 2 this year, the third Riga International Biennale of Contemporary Art will take place (FISH). This time it is called “Exercises in Respect”, the organizers inform the portal “Delfi”.
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The main curator of RIBOCA3 is René Block and the associate curator is Nico Anklam.
The main venue of the exhibition in Andrejsala will feature 63 works by both foreign and Latvian artists. The second venue of the Biennale will be the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design (DMDM)
“The artists’ vision as the conceptual starting point of the exhibition allows the creation of the RIBOCA3 exhibition to be positioned as a space for experimental expressions free from preconceived ideas. The works in the , that each work of art should be viewed separately, but at the same time they all fit into the concept and context of the biennial, “the organizers write.
René Bloks, the main curator of the Biennale, explains in more detail: “Looking at history, gestures that show respect are often used to indicate that we are trying to understand each other, despite differences of opinion. listening to the overall sound of the Biennale will be both harmonious and disharmonious. “
Also in 2022, the main venue of the biennial will be the more than 20 hectare area of Andrejsala, where the trade port used to be. The impressive environment, in which an abandoned power plant, a port, grain storage facilities, meadows, hangars and other elements of industrial architecture coexist, has served as a source of inspiration for René Blok in choosing the exhibitors:
“A sense of musicality is needed to fill this space and environment. I think of each artist as a voice, their works as musical instruments. In this metaphor, Andrejsala is their concert hall. But their job is not to play a piece under the direction of a conductor. “
The second venue of the Biennale will be the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design (DMDM) in Old Riga. It will exhibit graphics by 38 internationally renowned artists, previously created for the Biennials curated by René Blok in Hamburg (1985), Sydney (1990), Istanbul (1995) and Cetinje (2004). Some of RIBOCA3’s main exhibitors will also be represented at this exhibition; the full list of DMDM exhibitors will be announced in the spring.
According to RIBOCA3, more than half of the works on display at the main exhibition will be creative, inspired by the city’s unique social and historical contexts. It should be mentioned that a record number of local – Latvian participants will participate in RIBOCA3. A full list of participants can be found on the RIBOCA3 website.
RIBOCA3 curator René Bloks began his creative work by creating exhibitions at his own galleries, Galerie René Block in Berlin (1964–1979) and René Block Gallery Ltd. In New York (1974-77). In 1972, the Bloc became curator of the Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, the Berliner Festwochen and the Academy of Arts. From 1982 to 1992, he was responsible for visual artists and composers in the “Berlin Artists’ Residence” program, where he organized several international projects, performance and music festivals, and exhibitions “Daadgalerie”. In the following years, until 1995, he was responsible for creating exhibition programs for the IFA (Institute for External Relations), representing German art abroad. During this period he became curator of several biennials, including Hamburg (1985, Towards an Art of Peace Biennial), Sydney (1990, The Readymade Boomerang), Istanbul (1995, Orient / ation), and the Korean city of Gwangju (2000, Eurafrica). , In the Montenegrin city of Cetinje with Natasa Ilic (2004, Love it or leave it), in Belgrade with Barbara Heinrich (2006, The October Salon’s Art, Life & Confusion).
From 1997 to 2006, René Bloks was the director of the Kunsthalle Fridericianum in Kassel and curated several notable exhibitions. These included the series “Balkan Trilogy” with the exhibition “In den Schluchten des Balkan” (2003), which featured 88 works by artists from 12 countries in the Balkans, as well as a number of satellite projects in the Balkans, including the 2004 Cetinje Biennale.
He completed his major art projects while curating the Nordic Pavilion (Welfare-Fare Wel) at the 52nd Venice Biennale in 2007. A year later, René Bloks founded the art space TANAS, which served as a platform for Turkish artists in Berlin until 2013. At the same time, he co-founded the Kunsthal 44 Møen exhibition space in Denmark, where he continues to work as artistic director.
Niko Anklams, the associate curator of the Biennale, has recently been appointed director of the Recklinghausen Exhibition Hall and director of the Recklinghausen Museum. He is the author of several publications on conceptual art and art practices related to the Fluxus movement, as well as lecturing at the University of the Arts Berlin, Humboldt University, the Tromsø Academy of Contemporary Art in Norway and the Estonian Academy of Arts in Tallinn. Anklam holds a doctorate and his research interests include the emergence of the Nordic landscape in the visual arts in the 19th century. He has also been curator of the Danish exhibition space Kunsthal 44 Møen, founded by Rene Blok, and has worked on projects at the Rietveld Pavilion in Amsterdam, the art project Years in Copenhagen and the Malmö Academy of the Arts.
RIBOCA is an international biennial founded in 2016 with a European focus and a strong regional profile. The rich history of Riga and the Baltic States allows the Biennale to highlight a wider region and creates opportunities for artists to enter into a dialogue with the cultural, historical and socio-political context of the city and its geographical surroundings, according to the organizers.
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