Australia set to impress at Venice Biennale

After months of empty squares, restaurants and shuttered shops, Venice is bouncing back to life.

Kerry Gardner runs Australia's contribution to the Venice Biennale and has written a book on it. Picture: Aaron Francis

After months of empty squares, restaurants and shuttered shops, Venice is bouncing back to life. This new vitality in the city world famous for its museums and galleries is giving optimism to Kerry Gardner, the chairwoman of Australia at the Venice Biennale.

Despite being put on hold last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a related event — the Architecture Biennale — opened its doors last month, a welcome sign that life is shifting back to normal.

The delay means the Art Biennale, which is the contemporary art iteration of the event held every second year, is set to run next year with Australia to be represented by Melbourne-based artist and musician Marco Fusinato.

While what Australia’s involvement will look like has yet to be decided, Ms Gardner is watching with curious optimism.

“We never thought Venice would be open for the architecture biennale and it has,” she said.

“I spoke to a friend who lives there last week who said the city is feeling vibrant and optimistic.”

“At this stage we’re hoping to have our dedicated art patrons to go and see his work in our beautiful pavilion.”

While Marco Fusinato has been working hard in preparation for the show, especially while adapting to a Covid-changed world, the concept of his work remains a mystery.

The theme of the event is never announced until it opens its doors, but the world will be watching with enthusiasm.

Ms Gardner has been the chairwoman of Australia at the Venice Biennale since 2017 and since her appointment has become curious about the nation’s history at the event, which today remains an aspiration and career highlight for many contemporary artists.

By combing through the archives of the State Library of NSW, she uncovered untold secrets about its history explored in her book “Australia at the Venice Biennale: A Century of Contemporary Art”.

A documentary film maker and passionate figure in the art world, this is her first book.

It was previously thought that Australia’s first involvement with the Biennale began in 1954 by sending its first official delegation of artists: Sidney Nolan, Russel Drysdale and William Dobell.

But she uncovered the first delegation was actually a collection of Australian artists who were living in London and Paris who started exhibiting as early as 1897.

“There were actually 10 Australian artists who showed their work between 1907 and 1915,” she said.

“They considered themselves Australian-Britons. They didn’t exhibit as a group, and they were hung in the British Pavilion, but it was wonderful that we could showcase our art in that way.”

The first female artist was thought to be sent in 1982, but during the project Ms Gardner uncovered it was actually much earlier, with modernist painter Thea Proctor who showed at the Biennale as early as 1912.

Trawling through the history of the selected artists over the years, Ms Gardner noticed how the nature of the selection process has changed, as well as the types of candidates that were successfully put forward.

Australia’s delegate was previously decided by a small group of arts patrons who chose their favoured artist, but has now moved to a system of expressions of interest as a way to democratise the process.

Ms Gardner said it is symbolic of a larger shift within the art community.

“What you’re noticing now is a much greater awareness of the need to be more representative and more inclusive,” she said.

“We didn’t have our first Indigenous artist until 1990, and then first female Indigenous artist until 1997.”

“There’s a growing awareness that this is a bit of a national shame, and I think now there’s been a change in the mindset which is great.”