56th Venice Biennale

Maja Bajevic: "Arts, Crafts and Facts" responds to the denigration of human labor caused by the financialization of the global economy. To compose the libretto of "Arts, Crafts and Facts", Bajevic investigated the repercussions of world price fluctuations of raw materials such as coffee and cacao on all levels of the economy, from shop prices to stock prices, and from the income of home owners to that of store owners.

Recited against the background of an early industrial textile factory founded in the socialist context of former Yugoslavia, the libretto charts the effects of neoliberal speculation on the concrete living conditions of the global working class.

Monica Bonvicini: First shown in "All the World’s Futures", 56th Venice Biennale “Latent Combustion” is a monumental work, both handcrafted and readymade, made of thick construction chains and conglomerates of chainsaws, covered with black industrial liquid rubber. The hanging sculpture is dramatic and in the same time makes a visual allusion to nature. The dripping of the black liquid rubber on the sculptures relates to the moment of powerlessness which follows hanging up the symbol of skilled labour and traditional craft abilities, still full of its productive tension. Each sculpture is composed by around 15 chainsaws & different tools. It is individually assembled, and then covered in black polyurethane – shiny & matt. Each sculpture is unique in its form and aesthetical character. The sculptures are hanging from the ceiling through iron chains. Handwork tools have been used in the artistic practice of Monica Bonvicini since many years. The preoccupation of the artist with the notion of work and labor has been constant since her first beginnings, with a specific attention to the complex interrelation of gender roles. The installation in Venice challenges questions about the production of art, the disappearing of traditional handcraft facilities.

Curator: Okwui Enwezor