Turku Biennial 2011 – Patterns of the Mind

Turku Biennial 2011 – Patterns of the Mind

Turku Biennial 2011 is an international exhibition of contemporary art bringing together artists from five different countries. The theme of the exhibition is ”Patterns of the Mind”. Nineteen artists have been invited to take part in the exhibition. The Turku Biennial includes an Events Programme that brings together artists, researchers and art lovers.

The theme Patterns of the Mind theme reaches for thoughts and their winding paths in the human mind. It invites artists to deal with thoughts, ideas or reflections, that can be current and contemporary or everlasting and constant; from the mainstream of thoughts or hidden inside an individual. The theme provides keys to critical thought, works that take a stand, to sharp and discerning observations of the surrounding world. On the other hand the theme can be an intimate window to humanity.

The artists of the 2011 Turku Biennial have been chosen by six curators from five European countries. These experts of contemporary art were given the opportunity to reflect, what kind of artists would make meaningful works under the given theme. The invited curators are:
From Finland IC-98 (Visa Suonpää and Patrik Söderlund), an artist group based in Turku, which took part in the 2009 Turku Biennial and was selected as the winner.
From Sweden Magdalena Malm, director of Mobile Art Production in Stockholm
From Russia Elena Kolovskaya, director of the Pro Arte Foundation in St Petersburg
From Spain Martí Manen, independent curator based in Stockholm
From Italy Milovan Farronato, artistic director of Via Farini in Milan

As a result of the curators work nineteen artists have been invited to take part in the 2011 Turku Biennial. They will fill the two floors of the Ars Nova Museum with profound and challenging new works made specially for the exhibition. The artists are:

Selected by IC-98
Daniel Andersson (b. 1976, lives and works in Stockholm)
Thom Vink (b. 1965, lives and works in Turku and the Netherlands)
Essi Kausalainen (b. 1979, lives and works in Helsinki)
Cia Rinne (b. 1973, lives and works in Berlin)

Selected by Magdalena Malm
Magnus Bärtås and Hyun-jin Kwak (b. 1962 and 1974, live and work in Stockholm)
Magdalena Dziurlikowska (b. 1975, lives and works in Stockholm)
Kajsa Dahlberg, (b. 1973, lives and works in Malmö)

Selected by Elena Kolovskaya
Tatyana Ahmetgalieva (b. 1983, lives and works in St Petersburg)
Elena Gubanova and Ivan Govorkov (b. 1960 and 1949, live and work in St Petersburg)
Alexander Gurko (b. 1976, lives and works in Kassel)

Selected by Martí Manen
Ana García-Pineda (b. 1983, lives and works in Barcelona)
Rubén Grilo (b. 1981) lives and works in Barcelona and Amsterdam
Job Ramos (b. 1974) lives and works in Barcelona
Ignacio Uriarte (b. 1972, lives and works in Berlin)

Selected by Milovan Farronato
Giulio Frigo (b. 1984, lives and works in Milan)
Sissi (b. 1977, lives and works in Bologna)
Mauro Vignando (b. 1969, lives and works in Milan)