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various venues Murcia 9 October to 9 January
Manifesta occupies a very particular place in the landscape of biennales brought into being in the past two decades and its purposes are quite different from those of the Sao Paulo Bienal, launched in the early 19903 as a roving art event to be hosted in different dtìes around Europe, it evolved as a response to the political and economic changes brought about by the end of the Soviet Union and the consequent moves to European integration. Now it has shifted its focus towards Europe's neighbouring regions.
Manifesta has a more than usually explicit agenda. Its press material fosters the expectation that the financial contribution it seeks from its hosts - said to be euro3.3111 - will be amply recompensed in income from cultural tourism and in international positioning. It offers education for the local population, training for cultural mediators at local and national level, 'sustainability' in the form of ongoing goodwill and networks, and legacy in the form of buildings brought into use for cultural and social events. Manifesta also has an interest in curatorial innovation: in this its eighth edition it focuses on the idea of 'collective curating' as practised by three collectives - Tranzit.org, Alexandria Contemporary Arts Forum (ACAF) and Chamber of Public Secrets (CPS).
Over 12 scattered venues...