With a main essay by Rachel Weiss, archival texts from 1989–90 by Luis Camnitzer, Coco Fusco, Geeta Kapur and Mirko Lauer. New texts by Charles Esche and Gerardo Mosquera. Interviews with artists Alex Ángeles, José Bedia, Alfredo Márquez and Lázaro Saavedra.
The second book in Afterall’s Exhibition Histories series focuses on the third edition of the Bienal de La Habana, which took place in 1989. In the core essay, Rachel Weiss examines the ways in which this exhibition extended the global territory of contemporary art and redefined the biennial model. A key member of the curatorial team, Gerardo Mosquera, contributes a reflection on the project, and its constituent exhibitions and events are documented photographically. The book also includes papers delivered by Geeta Kapur and Mirko Lauer at the Bienal conference and republishes reviews of the Bienal by Coco Fusco and Luis Camnitzer. It opens with an introduction by Charles Esche and brings together recent interviews with participating artists Alex Ángeles, José Bedia, Alfredo Márquez and Lázaro Saavedra. Crucial texts from the time are complemented by vital new material, including 105 colour images and 18 black and white images.
The Exhibition Histories series investigates exhibitions that have shaped the way contemporary art is experienced, made and discussed.
Published by Afterall Books in association with the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, 2011. Distributed by Koenig Books and ARTBOOK | D.A.P.