The Biennale of Sydney has announced the appointment of Stephanie Rosenthal as Artistic Director of the 20th Biennale of Sydney (2016).

Currently based in London, Rosenthal has been Chief Curator of the Hayward Gallery since 2007, having previously worked at the Haus der Kunst in Munich for more than 10 years, where she was appointed Curator for Modern and Contemporary Art in 2000. Earlier this year, Rosenthal was also one of three curators who realised a national section of the first biennial in Cartagena, Colombia, which ran from February to April.

Phillip Keir, newly appointed Chairman of the Biennale of Sydney said the Board was delighted to confirm Stephanie Rosenthal’s appointment as Artistic Director for the 2016 exhibition. ‘We are very pleased that in Stephanie, the Biennale has again attracted an independent curator of outstanding calibre.

‘We look forward to welcoming Stephanie to Sydney later this year and to her working with our team to realise an inspirational program of events in 2016.’

Danielle Earp, Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Biennale of Sydney said, ‘Stephanie Rosenthal is a dynamic curator who is internationally renowned for her exploration of the relationship between visual art and performance. Her concept for the Biennale will no doubt reflect her own perspective of Sydney and translate into a series of engaging experiences for local and visiting audiences.’

As Chief Curator at the Hayward Gallery, Rosenthal has worked with leading international artists and curated numerous exhibitions including: ‘Robin Rhode: Who Saw Who’ (2008); ‘Walking in My Mind’ (2009); ‘MOVE: Choreographing You’ (2010); ‘Art of Change: New Directions from China’ (2012); and ‘Pipilotti Rist: Eyeball Massage’ (2012). She recently unveiled ‘Ana Mendieta: Traces’, the first retrospective of the artist’s work in the UK, and the acclaimed exhibition ‘Dayanita Singh: Go Away Closer’. Rosenthal has also curated the Hayward Gallery’s major autumn show, ‘MIRRORCITY: 23 artists from London’, which will open on 14 October 2014.

At the Haus der Kunst, she curated a series of highly praised exhibitions including: ‘Stories. Narrative Structures in Contemporary Art’ (2002); ‘Abigail O’Brien – The Seven Sacraments’ (2003); ‘Aernout Mik – Dispersions’ (2004); ‘Paul McCarthy. LaLa Land Parody Paradise’ (2005); ‘Black Paintings: Barnett Newman, Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella, Ad Reinhardt, Mark Rothko’ (2006); ‘Allan Kaprow – Art as Life’ (2006); and ‘Christoph Schlingensief: 18 frames per second’ (2007).

On her appointment to the 20th Biennale of Sydney, Stephanie Rosenthal said, ‘It is a true pleasure and honour to take on the role of Artistic Director for 2016. As one of the oldest biennales, it is an ideal opportunity to assess what such an event could and should do in a location like Sydney where so many different cultures and languages come together. I look forward to showing great artists, and to working with a fantastic team to realise a meaningful and relevant 20th Biennale of Sydney.’

Rosenthal will formally commence her appointment as Artistic Director with the Biennale of Sydney in November 2014.

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