Venice Biennale and Esquizos de Madrid

The Venice Biennale opened its doors on June 7th. This contemporary art fair is the oldest-established, largest and most influential in Europe. The theme for this year’s exhibition – “Making Worlds” was chosen by this year’s Biennale director, Daniel Birnbaum, to reflect globalisation.

The event has had its budget slashed by 1.4 million dollars, but still managed to attract 90 artists representing 77 countries. German artist Tobias Rehberger won the top prize – The Golden Lion – for his work, “What You Love Also Makes You Cry.”

Yoko Ono and John Baldessari received Golden Lions for Lifetime Achievement.

The Venice Biennale runs until 22nd November.

Meanwhile, painters from the so-called “Esquizos de Madrid” group were reunited at a retrospective exhibition at the Queen Sofia Museum in Madrid.

These artists are figurative painters who worked between 1970 and 1985, and opposed the aesthetic of their time in order to find their own artistic path. The painters were influenced by the pop art, 60s pop music, Kitch styling and neo-modernism.

The exhibition runs until mid-September.

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tags: Contemporary art, Exhibition, Venice