11th Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art presents first program from September 7 to November 9, 2019, with press view the day before. BMW again Corporate Partner of the 11th Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art.

Berlin. From September 7 to November 9, the Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art invites to a first program “exp. 1: The Bones of the World” with over twenty-five contributions and diverse formats. On the occasion of the exhibition opening, a press view takes place the previous day, on September 6 at 11.00 am. The 11th Berlin Biennale brings together the most influential current positions of artists, theorists, and practitioners in Berlin – with BMW as corporate partner.

The ground floor of the corner tower at the architectural complex ExRotaprint in the neighborhood of Wedding in Berlin will open its doors as a temporary home for the 11th Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art with “exp. 1: The Bones of the World”. A first program with over twenty-five contributions and diverse formats takes place from September 7 to November 9, 2019, unfolding until the opening of the 11th Berlin Biennale in June 2020. The 11th Berlin Biennale takes place from June 13 to September 13, 2020, at various venues in Berlin.

“How do each of us bare ourselves to the world? ‘The Bones of the World’ is an attempt to hold on to the complicated beauty of life when the fire has erupted. Not an obsession with the ruins, but an attempt to be attentive to what is made with the rubble. A way of working with and remaining beside that which moves us now. As an exhibition it is a setting, an exercise in mutual exposure, a place to listen to the stories that shape us - stories we have shared with one another, and stories that have not yet been told. It is a space open to the diverse experiences that we bring with us, but also to those occurring around us, outside our comfort zones, at this very moment.

‘Os Ossos do Mundo’ [The Bones of the World] is also the title of a travelog written by the Brazilian artist Flávio de Carvalho (1899 -1973) during his time in Europe in the mid-1930s. Today it reads as a kind of reverse ethnography of the Old World. For us, ‘The Bones of the World’ is a point of departure, an initial motion, aware of the rawness of time and its broken promises. At the same time, it is a joyous acknowledgement of life occurring amidst, against, and despite the general states of brokenness all around us. From here, we move.” (María Berríos, Renata Cervetto, Lisette Lagnado, and Agustín Pérez Rubio).

The curators of the 11th Berlin Biennale envision the forthcoming edition as a series of lived experiences that evolve as a process. It begins with three sequential moments, “exp. 1”, “exp. 2”, and “exp. 3”, unfolding from September 2019 to May 2020, which attempt to learn from and build sustainable relations, not only with participating artists and projects, but as importantly with the city and people of Berlin. The starting point is the immediate surroundings of the ExRotaprint complex in the neighborhood of Wedding. Nothing is complete; things are expected to move and be transformed. In June 2020, the 11th Berlin Biennale will bring forth these experiences in different venues throughout the city.

With works and contributions by Marwa Arsanios, Felix Brüggemann, Flávio de Carvalho, Léo Corrêa, Die Remise (Ali Akyol, Jacqueline Aslan, Stefan Bast, Muriel Biedrzycki, Julia, Brunner, Fatma Cakmak, Stefan Endewardt, Tobi Euler, Melina Gerstemann, Ayşe Güleç, Juanita Kellner, Angelika Levi, Carmen Mörsch, Shanti Suki Osman, Ayse Preissing, Markus Schega, Miriam Schickler, Aylin Turgay, and pupils from the Nürtingen and Heinrich-Zille elementary schools, with Çiçek Bacık, Aïcha Diallo, Kotti-Shop, Annika Niemann), Feminist Health Care Research Group (Inga Zimprich/Julia Bonn), Andrés Fernández, Florian Gass, Till Gathmann, Mauricio Gatti, Eiko Grimberg, Sheroanawe Hakihiiwe, Âlut Kangermio, Mapa Teatro, Virginia de Medeiros, Marcelo Moreschi, Museo de la Solidaridad Salvador Allende, Mirja Reuter, Teatro da Vertigem, Teo, Cecilia Vicuña, Osías Yanov, and more.

The 11th Berlin Biennale space at ExRotaprint - a tenant-run project initiated by artists, bringing together work, art, and community - serves as a space for these diverse experiences to unfold, each including exhibitions, long-term artist projects and workshops, activations of artistic and pedagogical archives, performances, talks, poetry readings, artistic residencies, and other on-site interventions.

The visual identity of the 11th Berlin Biennale is being developed by Till Gathmann.

Besides the Berlin Biennale, the list of long-term commitments to the arts in Germany’s capital city includes the Gallery Weekend and the Preis der Nationalgalerie, which will be announced on September 12, 2019. Beyond the extensive commitment to the arts, BMW cooperates with the opera house Staatsoper Unter den Linden and invites to the long-standing open-air format “State Opera for All” at Bebelplatz. In addition, and with BWM OPERA NEXT, they make use of the opportunities of digitalization to open fresh perspectives and new ways accessing the world of opera for young audiences.

Information about the press view on September 6, 2019 at 11.00 am
On September 6, 2019, the 11th Berlin Biennale begins sharing its process with a press view in its temporary space at the ExRotaprint complex in Berlin-Wedding. After a short introduction at 11 am, the curators of the 11th Berlin Biennale will be available for questions and conversations until 1 pm. The introduction will be in English.

RSVP: Please register to the press view at press@berlinbiennale.de.

More information and a selection of images are available upon request.

The Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art is funded by the Kulturstiftung des Bundes (German Federal Cultural Foundation) and organized by KUNST-WERKE BERLIN e. V.

Overview:
Press view
Friday, September 6, 2019 from 11.00 am – 1.00 pm

“exp. 1: The Bones of the World”
September 7 until November 9, 2019
Housewarming: Friday, September 6, 2019, from 5.00 pm – 9.00 pm

11th Berlin Biennale c/o ExRotaprint
Bornemannstraße 9
13357 Berlin

Opening hours: Thursday – Saturday, 2.00 pm – 7.00 pm
Free admisssion

For further questions please contact:
Prof Dr Thomas Girst
BMW Group Corporate and Intergovernmental Affairs
Head of Cultural Engagement
Telephone: +49 89 382 247 53

www.press.bmwgroup.com
Email: presse@bmw.de

Isabell Ertl
Head of Communications
Berlin Biennale für zeitgenössische Kunst
KUNST-WERKE BERLIN e. V.
Telephone: +49 30 24 34 59 42

www.11.berlinbiennale.de / www.berlinbiennale.de
Email: press@berlinbiennale.de


About BMW Group Cultural Engagement
For almost 50 years now, the BMW Group has initiated and engaged in over 100 cultural cooperations worldwide. The company places the main focus of its long-term commitment on contemporary and modern art, classical music and jazz as well as architecture and design. In 1972, three large-scale paintings were created by the artist Gerhard Richter specifically for the foyer of the BMW Group's Munich headquarters. Since then, artists such as Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Daniel Barenboim, Jonas Kaufmann and architect Zaha Hadid have co-operated with BMW. In 2016 and 2017, female artist Cao Fei from China and American John Baldessari created the next two vehicles for the BMW Art Car Collection. Besides co-initiatives, such as BMW Tate Live, the BMW Art Journey and the “Opera for All” concerts in Berlin, Munich, Moscow and London, the company also partnerswith leading museums and art fairs as well as orchestras and opera houses around the world. The BMW Group takes absolute creative freedom in all its cultural activities – as this initiative is as essential for producing groundbreaking artistic work as it is for major innovations in a successful business.

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The BMW Group
With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. The BMW Group production network comprises 31 production and assembly facilities in 15 countries; the company has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2018, the BMW Group sold over 2,490,000 passenger vehicles and more than 165,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax in the financial year 2018 was € 9.815 billion on revenues amounting to € 97.480 billion. As of 31 December 2018, the BMW Group had a workforce of 134,682 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.

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