European Cultural Centre – Palazzo Mora
MONGOLIA PAVILION /THE FIRST
56TH INTERNATIONAL ART EXHIBITION
LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA
Bat-Uul Erdene
Governor of Capital City and Mayor of Ulaanbaatar
Odonbaatar Shijeekhuu
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Mongolia to Italy
OTHER HOME
Thursday, May 7th | 5pm
Pre-View opening parties: 7 and 8 May 2015 | 18-22 pm
Artists: Unen Enkh, Enkhbold Togmidshiirev
Curator: Uranchimeg Tsultem
Commissioner: Gantuya Badamgarav
Exhibition: May 9 – November 22, 2015
Palazzo Mora Second Floor
Cannaregio 3659, 30121 Venice, Italy
http://www.mongolia-pavilion-venice-biennale.com
Unen Enkh. Untitled 2015-02. Detail. Felt, horsehair, iron-wire, lead sheet. 278x29x22cm. Photo by Unen Enkh
Other Home
MONGOLIA has a living tradition of nomadic life specific in its everyday interaction with nature. The nomads live through seasonal migration without causing any modifications to environment, and create their life based solely on natural resources. The Mongolia Pavilion presents Unen Enkh and Enkhbold Togmidshiirev, the artists who work with organic materials from Mongolian nomadic culture and raise questions about global problems of cultural otherness and displacement.
The Mongolia Pavilion consists of two types of art presentation: a sedentary pavilion space at the Palazzo Mora and a nomadic pavilion with artist Enkhbold’s performances presented at designated public spaces around the city of Venice. Unen Enkh’s sculptures explore the culturally-laden products of nomadic traditions, such as felt and horsehair, in juxtaposition to metal and wood. Enkhbold’s two-dimensional works, made primarily of horse dung, ash, tripe, sand and shrub, are displayed at Palazzo Mora.
Venice was built by mainland residents fleeing invasions by nomads, including Attila and the Huns in the 5th century. Centuries later, Venetian merchant Marco Polo (1254–1324) traveled to the Mongol Empire, where he spent 16 years at the Khubilai Khaan’s (1215-1294) court. Enkhbold, building upon the historical legacy of Venice’s relationship with nomads and Mongols, brings his performance art to the heart of Venice by nomadizing around the city and socializing with Venice locals and visitors. The idea of social interaction between people without dependence on modern technologies is central in Enkhbold’s performance art.
Mongolia opened its doors to the world in 1990 after seven decades of socialist regime. Contemporary artists of the new Mongolia explore issues of identity in the post-socialist era of political, social, and cultural change. The works of both artists here presented are rooted in nature, suggesting that it is not industry that brings people and cultures closer together. The Mongolia Pavilion suggests responses to modern-day problems of alienation and displacement through a multifaceted notion of what constitutes one’s “home” in a global world.
Artists: Unen Enkh, Enkhbold Togmidshiirev
Curator: Uranchimeg Tsultem
Commissioner: Gantuya Badamgarav
Advisors: Boldbaatar Chultem, David A Ross
Supporters: E. Bat-Uul, Mayor of Ulaanbaatar City
Partner: Embassy of Mongolia in Rome
Organizer: Mongolian Contemporary Art Support Association
Open: May 9 to 22 November 2015 (closed on Tuesday)
Email: media@mongolia-pavilion-venice-biennale.com
Address: European Cultural Center
Palazzo Mora 2nd floor
Cannaregio 3659, Venice, Italy
http://www. mongolia-pavilion-venice-biennale.com
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