"I'd love to be considered for the Whitney Biennial, but getting into it - even better! How does an artist get these curators into their studio? What can I expect after that? Can I do anything to improve my chances? -Longing for the Whitney Many artists have these questions, but few share them with me. Conventional wisdom has such sway: Make good work. Hang out with the right people. Be charming in the studio and wait for your call from the curators."
"When I spoke with performance artist and 2026 Whitney Biennial participant Pat Oleszko, she described the event as one everyone knew of, even if they weren't in the art world. To illustrate this, she described protestors at the No Kings rally in New York earlier this month who learned that the costumes she and her friends were wearing were made by a Whitney Biennial artist. She recalled, "I watched the wave of biennial recognition flow down the street" as people said, "Oh, she's a biennial artist!""
Conventional wisdom holds that artists can only increase biennial prospects by making strong work, cultivating social networks, and being personable in the studio. Artists can take additional, concrete steps to improve visibility and alignment with curators. Artists should first clarify what participation in a major biennial means for their careers and whether that recognition aligns with personal goals. Broad public recognition can follow inclusion, as when performance artist Pat Oleszko recounted protestors identifying costumes as made by a biennial artist. Inclusion often functions as an endorsement, but the work must speak to curators and resonate with current cultural interests.
Read at Hyperallergic
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]