About

Since 1999, the Liverpool Biennial, which is currently celebrating its 12th edition, has introduced a wide range of exciting and experimental contemporary art from around the world to Liverpool and its audiences.

In Tracing the Biennial, an invited panel of guests who were involved in its early years will provide a fascinating insight into its origins, aims and how it came to be the UK's largest visual arts festival. They will discuss why the festival is important for Liverpool, what has made it so successful, and why audiences travel from around the world to see it.

Tracing the Biennial will be introduced by Liverpool Biennial's current Director, Sam Lackey, who will share an insight into the current Biennial, uMoya: The Sacred Return of Lost Things, as well as the direction of the festival overall. Panelists include Lewis Biggs, former Liverpool Biennial Director; Jonathan Swain, who led the independent programme that complemented the first Liverpool Biennials; Bryan Biggs, Bluecoat's Director of Cultural Legacies, and who has been involved from the start; Laurie Peake, who was Project Director from 2002 - 2012, and Lois Keidan, who was involved in the live art programme, 'Liverpool Live', co-curated by the Bluecoat and the Live Art Development Agency. Gabriela Saenger Silva chairs the discussion and reflects on her own more recent involvement with the Liverpool Biennial when she was Meditation Coordinator in 2016 and 2018.

This is a rare opportunity to hear about Liverpool Biennial's 26-year development and why it continues to play a crucial role in the city's cultural offer, with a reach far beyond Liverpool.

Image Credit: The first Liverpool Biennial at the Bluecoat, 1999. Installations by Australian artist Julie Gough (foreground) and Cuban artist Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons.

Tickets: Free

Location

the Bluecoat

Get directions

Address: Bluecoat Chambers, 8 School Lane, Liverpool, Merseyside L1 3BX

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