the Hermitage

The Tenth European Biennale of Contemporary Art Manifesta will be held in St. Petersburg from July to October 2014.

It will be located on the three sites, one of which will be the renovated General Staff building. Perhaps the Biennale will work around the clock. The curator of the event will be chosen in spring by the committee including the Hermitage director Mikhail Piotrovsky, the curator of contemporary art area Dmitry Ozerkov and the three representatives of the Netherlands where the headquarters of Manifesta is located. Three candidates are shortlisted for today, but their names are kept secret.

Manifesta displays youth and experimental art from around the world, giving preference to European authors. Manifesta is each time held in different cities, usually avoiding capitals and major art centers. The Bienniale is accompanied by educational programs, discussions and seminars.

Manifesta was first held in Rotterdam in 1996 and later became one of the major cultural events in Europe and the third largest event after the Biennale in Venice and Documenta in Kassel. Last year Manifesta was held in the town of Genk in the Belgian province of Limburg. In 2010 the Biennale was to be held in Gdansk, but at the last moment the place of the Biennale was moved to the Spanish Murcia. During its history the event was held in Luxembourg, Ljubljana, Frankfurt-am-Main, San Sebastian, Nicosia, Trento, Bolzano, Rovereto and Fortezza. The Russian curator and the member of the Manifesta Foundation Viktor Miziano earlier reported about the preliminary decision to hold the Biennale in St. Petersburg and the corresponding negotiations.