LA BIENNALE DE MONTRÉAL 2009 APPOINTS SCOTT BURNHAM AS CREATIVE DIRECTOR, ANNOUNCES THEME: “OPEN CULTURE”
Creative Director:
SCOTT BURNHAM
MONTRÉAL CANADA
May 2009
Burnham explains:
“We are in the midst of a paradigm shift in society’s relationship with art and culture. The line between audience and artist is blurring to the point of invisibility, and in its place is a democratisation of the creative process and the demystification of the artist as shaman. In the same way that the open source movement has driven technological innovation, the philosophies and processes behind open, remix and mashup culture, Creative Commons licensing and collaborative creativity is driving cultural innovation — and ultimately redefining creativity itself. The 2009 Biennale de Montréal will be the international focal point for the exploration of this shift in culture.”
Working across visual art, design, architecture, theatre and music, La Biennale de Montréal 2009 will be a catalyst for new open culture projects and the exhibition and exploration of some of the most innovative projects exploring open creativity.
About Scott Burnham
Scott Burnham’s work exploring creative catalysts, urban culture and open innovation has appeared in numerous cities throughout Europe, North America and China. He is the curator of Urban Play, a project he created and is developing with Droog Design, Amsterdam. He is formerly Creative Director for the Urbis Centre for Urban Culture in Manchester, UK, where he directed “Ill Communication”, one of Europe’s largest overviews of street art; ‘SuperCity’, a multi-disciplinary collaboration with architect Will Alsop to re-think the future of the urban environment, “At Home”, with designer Peter Saville, “The China Show” exploring contemporary Chinese creativity, and Urban Oasis with The Office for Subversive Architecture. He has also created and directed projects for London’s National Theatre, The Royal Society for British Sculpture, the cities of Barcelona and Prague, and Jude Kelly’s METAL organisation in London.
A frequent lecturer and writer on creative catalysts and cultural innovation, recent keynote lectures have been delivered to organisations in the UK, Portugal, Austria, Italy, United States, Canada, and the Netherlands. His work and commentary has been featured on BBC television, The Today Programme, BBC Radio 4, BBC World Service, Sky News, Spain TV1, Design Week, Grafik, The Guardian, Icon magazine, and The BBC Culture Show. He is a contributing author to the book “Visualising the City” (Routledge 2007), numerous periodicals, and maintains a series of international projects, consultations, and writing and lecturing appearances. For more information: www.scottburnham.com
About La Biennale de Montréal
Organized by the Centre international d’art contemporain de Montréal (CIAC) since 1998, La Biennale de Montréal is curated around the axis of a focused survey of contemporary art and culture and presentations by established and emerging Canadian and international artists. The event induces the unexpected in new and recent art and presents artworks in the public spaces as well as original and important exhibitions in new venues to discover.
For press inquiries, please contact:
Claude Gosselin, C.M.
claude.gosselin@ciac.ca
CIAC / Centre international d’art contemporain de Montréal
C.P. 760 Place du Parc
Montréal, (Québec) H2X 4A6 Canada
T. 514 288-0811 / ciac@ciac.ca
For more information, please visit our website www.ciac.ca/biennale2009