BMW Art Guide by Independent Collectors

Barbara Moore

CEO of Biennale of Sydney

Barbara Moore, CEO, Biennale of Sydney
Barbara Moore, CEO, Biennale of Sydney

Tell us a bit about the history of the Biennale of Sydney.

The Biennale of Sydney gathers on the ancestral lands and waters of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal, Dhrawal and Gamaygal people, all in and around the Sydney region of Australia.

Since its inception in 1973, the Biennale of Sydney has offered artists the opportunity to push themselves in new and creative ways and exhibit their work in a truly international context. By supporting artists, the Biennale also offers audiences a chance to expand and transform their thinking by considering different perspectives.

One way to think of the Biennale of Sydney is as a test lab for contemporary arts and culture – we are ever evolving in response to changing needs of artists and audiences. Now in its 22nd iteration, the Biennale continues to support contemporary artists and nurture the exchange of culture and ideas, by being agile, boldly creative, respectful and collaborative in all that we do.

Tony Albert, Brothers (The Prodigal Son), 2020. Installation view (2020) for the 22ndBiennale of Sydney, National Art School. Courtesy the artist and Sullivan+Strumpf, Sydney. Photo: Zan Wimberley
Tony Albert, Brothers (The Prodigal Son), 2020. Installation view (2020) for the 22ndBiennale of Sydney, National Art School. Courtesy the artist and Sullivan+Strumpf, Sydney. Photo: Zan Wimberley

The opening of the current 22nd Biennale, titled NIRIN (Edge), was on March 14, and closed 10 days later due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the installation period and global closures of public spaces, where you already thinking about the Biennale’s response to a crisis-closure in order to maintain NIRIN in public view?

Global closures of public spaces due to COVID-19 began taking effect during opening week festivities of the Biennale. It was only after our first open day, 14 March, that the possibility of closing became a likelihood. So our first priority as a response to COVID was to help participating artists get home - international boarders were starting to close. Over the course of a few days, the Biennale team and our exhibition partners worked closely together to keep the physical exhibition open, then close the physical exhibition, shift to exclusively online content and put the exhibition into hibernation before full isolation measures took effect.

Installation view (2020) photographed in the Grand Courts at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney. Photo: Zan Wimberley
Installation view (2020) photographed in the Grand Courts at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney. Photo: Zan Wimberley
Biennale of Sydney 2020, website screenshot
Biennale of Sydney 2020, website screenshot
Karla Dickens, "Cruel buffoonery", 2019. Courtesy of the artist and Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane. Photo: Mick Richards
Karla Dickens, "Cruel buffoonery", 2019. Courtesy of the artist and Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane. Photo: Mick Richards

What did you particularly enjoy from the physical exhibition of NIRIN?

NIRIN is just as much about something that you feel as it is what you see. There is a humanity and honesty to this exhibition that makes it feel good to experience it. Now, more than ever, it is important for people to find ways to connect, help each other, listen, collaborate and heal, and the physical exhibition of NIRIN helps us do all of these things.

NIRIN was and continues to be highly anticipated, now as a digital experience. The exhibition highlights issues surrounding indigenous and First Nation peoples, as well as social, political, and environmental urgencies facing us today. As Biennale CEO, what do you pursue as the responsibilities of the Biennale of Sydney?

The responsibility of the Biennale of Sydney is to be a safe place for people to honour mutual respect, the diversity of expression and thoughts that empower us all.

How do you ensure that the event at large stays contemporary and current in the fast-paced world, influenced by the art market?

Our focus is on supporting the artists, audiences and the communities we serve. Art is more about people than physical objects.

Jose Dávila, "The Act of Perseverance". Installation progress view (2020) for the 22nd Biennale of Sydney, Cockatoo Island. Courtesy the artist and König gallery. Photo: Zan Wimberley
Jose Dávila, "The Act of Perseverance". Installation progress view (2020) for the 22nd Biennale of Sydney, Cockatoo Island. Courtesy the artist and König gallery. Photo: Zan Wimberley
Paulo Nazareth, "WHITENESS ETHNOGRAPHY (two women with babies on their backs)", 2019. Courtesy of the artist and Stevenson, Cape Town/Johannesburg. Photo: Paulo Nazareth
Paulo Nazareth, "WHITENESS ETHNOGRAPHY (two women with babies on their backs)", 2019. Courtesy of the artist and Stevenson, Cape Town/Johannesburg. Photo: Paulo Nazareth

What do the artworks presented across Sydney this Biennale reveal about the current trends and market?

Collectors are increasingly interested in things that resonate with them personally, rather than things they think they should like or should acquire. Personal stories and connections add value. NIRIN acknowledges and appreciates people and culture that may be traditionally viewed as ‘edge’. ‘Edge’ is actually a really important location of connection, and in various ways, we can all appreciate being on the Edge in one way or another.

How do you perceive the position of collectors at an event like the Biennale of Sydney?

Collectors have a really important role in supporting artists by buying their work. The Biennale of Sydney invites artists to experiment and push boundaries in their practise, and when collectors then purchase that work, they are endorsing an artist in their current practice, direction and thinking. And in many cases, collectors aren’t just supporting an artist when they purchase a work – they are supporting an entire community.

NIRIN has launched as a virtual space Biennale, also through the Google Arts & Culture platform, what scheduling event/s is a “must-see” on your agenda?

For me, the NIRIN ‘must-sees’ in the digital space are shared through @biennaleofsydney social channels. Try the fish curry recipe, for example, brought to you by Breaking Bread, a multidisciplinary collective that uses food to bring people together and spark cultural dialogue.

Biennale of Sydney, Instagram post
Biennale of Sydney, Instagram post
Barabara McGrady. Installation view (2020) for the 22ndBiennale of Sydney, Campbelltown Arts Centre. Courtesy the artist. Photo: Zan Wimberley
Barabara McGrady. Installation view (2020) for the 22ndBiennale of Sydney, Campbelltown Arts Centre. Courtesy the artist. Photo: Zan Wimberley

On Independent Collectors, find this Online Exhibition with the Biennale of Sydney which goes into great depth with image material from the physical exhibition across Sydney.

In the fifth edition of the BMW Art Guide by Independent Collectors, digitally discover here on our website, Sydney-based collections, The Elliot Eyes Collection and White Rabbit Collection of Chinese Contemporary Art.

More Information on 22nd Biennale of Sydney

Insiders (67)

Wilhelmina Jewell Strong - Sparks

Founder of BiTHOUSE Projects - BAAR Art Journey

MATTHIAS ARNDT

Collector behind the ARNDT Collection

Sandra Guimarães

Director of Museum of Contemporary Art Helga de Alvear

Grazyna Kulczyk

Founder of Muzeum Susch

THE FAIREST

Interview with Georgie Pope and Eleonora Sutter, Co-founders

Kamiar Maleki

Director at VOLTA

Gallery Weekend Berlin 2022

Tokini Peterside

Founder and Director, ART X Lagos

Poka-Yio

Founding Director of the Athens Biennale

Boris Ondreička

Artistic Director of viennacontemporary

Maribel Lopez

Director of ARCO

David Gryn

Founder and Director of Daata

Fondation Beyeler Audiovisual Broadcast

Fondation Beyeler and Nordstern Basel present Dixon x Transmoderna

Gary Yeh

Founder of ArtDrunk and Young Collector

WATCH: The Best of the BMW Art Guide

Where will you travel next to explore art?

Maike Cruse

2020 Gallery Weekend Berlin

Touria El Glaoui

Founding Director of 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair

Johann König

Messe in St. Agnes

PArt - Producers Art Platform

A crisis initiative to help artists directly affected by the pandemic

Unique Collector’s Item

by Independent Collectors

Alix Dana

Fair Director at Independent

When Collectors are Able to Commission

by Nicole Büsing and Heiko Klaas

Juliet Kothe and Julia Rust

Initiators of Collection Night, Berlin

Marie-Anne McQuay

Curator of Wales in Venice, 58th Venice Biennale 2019

Dorothy and Herb Vogel

Two extraordinary art collectors

Heather Hubbs

Director at NADA

Every Art Collection Needs Space

by Nicole Büsing and Heiko Klaas

Collecting Art with François Pinault

Rudolf Stingel at Palazzo Grassi

A Common Ground

by Silvia Anna Barrilà

Caroline Vos

Director at Amsterdam Art Weekend

Hidden Collections

by Nicole Büsing and Heiko Klaas

Nicole Berry

Executive Director of The Armory Show

Daniel Hug

Fair Director at Art Cologne

The Role of the Art Fair

by Silvia Anna Barrilà

Peter Bläuer

Director at LISTE

A Brush Against Nature

by Nicole Büsing and Heiko Klaas

Ilaria Bonacossa

Director of Artissima

Excessiveness, the Latent Danger of Collecting Art

by Independent Collectors

Jo Stella-Sawicka

Artistic Director at Frieze

Florence Bourgeois

Director at Paris Photo

Where Artists Can Work More Playfully

by Christiane Meixner

Specifically Commissioned

by Silvia Anna Barrilà

Manuela Mozo

Executive Director of UNTITLED, ART Miami and San Francisco

Important Museums and Private Collections

by Christiane Meixner

Susanna Corchia

Director of the Barcelona Gallery Weekend

Emilia van Lynden

Artistic Director at Unseen, Amsterdam

Carlos Urroz

Director at ARCOmadrid

Shoe Smudges Streaked Across the White Walls

by Christiane Meixner

Amanda Coulson

Director at VOLTA Basel

Douwe Cramer

Director at Singapore Contemporary

Art and Architecture – Attractive Allies

by Nicole Büsing and Heiko Klaas

Jo Baring

Curator of Sculpture Series, Masterpiece London

Bidders and Buyers

by Christiane Meixner

Anne Vierstraete

Managing Director at Art Brussels

Nanna Hjortenberg

Director at CHART

The Crucial Role of the New

by Independent Collectors

Makers and Believers

On Art History’s Most Famous Patrons

The Past is Back

And collectors are buying it up

Are Artists the Better Curators?

On the diminishing boundary between professions in the art world

The Digital Museum

On the importance of the museum’s web presence

The Man in the Middle

On the curator’s private and public engagements

A Private Matter?

On the importance of physical space for the value of art

Off the Wall

How museums contribute to the worth of artworks

Where to Go Next?

The fragmentation of Manhattan’s gallery scene

To Buy or Not to Buy

Collectors on their experiences of letting an artwork slip away

How to Pass On a Passion

On long-term challenges for new private museums