Anthony Gardner – författare

This innovative new history examines in-depth how the growing popularity of large-scale international survey exhibitions, or 'biennials', has influenced global contemporary art since the 1950s. Provides a comprehensive global history of biennialization from the rise of the European star-curator in the 1970s to the emergence of mega-exhibitions in Asia in the 1990sIntroduces a global array of case studies to illustrate the trajectory of biennials and their growing influence on artistic expression, from the Biennale de la Méditerranée in Alexandria, Egypt in 1955, the second Havana Biennial of 1986, New York’s Whitney Biennial in 1993, and the 2002 Documenta11 in Kassel, to the Gwangju Biennale of 2014Explores the evolving curatorial approaches to biennials, including analysis of the roles of sponsors, philanthropists and biennial directors and their re-shaping of the contemporary art sceneUses the history of biennials as a means of illustrating and inciting further discussions of globalization in contemporary art

This innovative new history examines in-depth how the growing popularity of large-scale international survey exhibitions, or 'biennials', has influenced global contemporary art since the 1950s. Provides a comprehensive global history of biennialization from the rise of the European star-curator in the 1970s to the emergence of mega-exhibitions in Asia in the 1990sIntroduces a global array of case studies to illustrate the trajectory of biennials and their growing influence on artistic expression, from the Biennale de la Méditerranée in Alexandria, Egypt in 1955, the second Havana Biennial of 1986, New York’s Whitney Biennial in 1993, and the 2002 Documenta11 in Kassel, to the Gwangju Biennale of 2014Explores the evolving curatorial approaches to biennials, including analysis of the roles of sponsors, philanthropists and biennial directors and their re-shaping of the contemporary art sceneUses the history of biennials as a means of illustrating and inciting further discussions of globalization in contemporary art

‘Hilarious, joyous and astute’ – Nicholas ColeridgeMild-mannered editor Ben Fairweather is horrified when his genteel religious magazine is taken over by a fanatical movement which holds that animals are closer than humans to God and should receive Holy Communion. Amid a national religious revival, this belief becomes mainstream and Ben is cancelled as a petphobic bigot.He finds a new job as a pianist in a nightclub. There he meets Anita Scott, a journalist bent on exposing the Russian oligarch Oleg Ogorodnikov – newly elevated to the House of Lords – whom she accuses of cultural vandalism.The scheming Ogorodnikov is actually involved in something far more sinister: a plot to take over London’s financial system. Little realising that his fingerprints are all over the theological unrest too, Ben and Anita are drawn into a world of spies, art forgery, AI and murder, with their own lives on the line.Anthony Gardner’s ingenious caper combines madcap excitement with a deftly satirical portrayal of the crazy beliefs, chaos-spreading Russians and rise of the robots which seem to define our age.

‘Hilarious, joyous and astute’ – Nicholas ColeridgeMild-mannered editor Ben Fairweather is horrified when his genteel religious magazine is taken over by a fanatical movement which holds that animals are closer than humans to God and should receive Holy Communion. Amid a national religious revival, this belief becomes mainstream and Ben is cancelled as a petphobic bigot.He finds a new job as a pianist in a nightclub. There he meets Anita Scott, a journalist bent on exposing the Russian oligarch Oleg Ogorodnikov – newly elevated to the House of Lords – whom she accuses of cultural vandalism.The scheming Ogorodnikov is actually involved in something far more sinister: a plot to take over London’s financial system. Little realising that his fingerprints are all over the theological unrest too, Ben and Anita are drawn into a world of spies, art forgery, AI and murder, with their own lives on the line.Anthony Gardner’s ingenious caper combines madcap excitement with a deftly satirical portrayal of the crazy beliefs, chaos-spreading Russians and rise of the robots which seem to define our age.