Biennale of Sydney to Be ‘a Carnival of Rays and Radiance’

Co-artistic director Cosmin Costinaș said this edition’s title, Ten Thousand Suns, may evoke climate change and nuclear war, but it is ‘precisely a statement against apocalyptic thinking’.

Andrew Thomas Huang, Flesh Nest (2017) (still). Digital video and animation. 9 min 23 sec. Courtesy the artist. Photo: Andrew Thomas Huang.

The Biennale of Sydney has announced the curatorial vision for its 24th edition, which takes place 9 March–10 June 2024.

Titled Ten Thousand Suns, the Biennale proposes celebration as both a source of joy and a kind of political expression, as evidenced by Pride parades, Carnival, and the famous Sydney Mardi Gras.

Cosmin Costinaș, Serwah Attafuah, William Yang, Kirtika Kain, and Inti Guerrero. Photo: Joshua Morris.
‘The 24th Biennale of Sydney will invoke a spirit of abundance and generosity as powerful political tools and resist the mainstream mindsets of perpetual crisis that often lead to inaction,’ said Artistic Directors Cosmin Costinaș and Inti Guerrero.

‘This edition revisits legacies of collective resistance, strength, and exuberance, embracing a more hopeful and joyful outlook, while celebrating the exhibition as a carnival of rays and radiance, aptly titled Ten Thousand Suns,’ they said.

Exhibition view: Anne Samat, Cannot Be Broken and Won’t Live Unspoken (2022). Rattan sticks, kitchen and garden utensils, beads, ceramic, metal and plastic ornaments. Wall panel: 365.75 x 731.5 x 61 cm. Floor: 609.5 x 609.5 cm. Commissioned by the Kochi-Muziris Biennale. Courtesy the artist and Marc Straus, New York. Photo: Anne Samat.
Speaking to The Sydney Morning Herald, Costinas acknowledged the title brings to mind the threats of climate change and nuclear war, but offered that ‘the Biennale is precisely a statement against apocalyptic thinking.’

Thirty-nine of the Biennale’s participating artists have been announced so far, including Andrew Thomas Huang (USA), Anne Samat (Malaysia/USA), and Serwah Attafuah (Ashanti, Australia).