Canberra Art Biennial returns for fourth edition in October

Event previously known as contour 556 set to take over city for month-long celebration of art.

Words: Charlotte Middleton

After three prior iterations, the event known as ‘contour 556’ has rebranded in 2022 to become Canberra Art Biennial, taking over the capital of Australia on Ngunnawal Country from 1–29 October 2022.

This year bigger and better than ever, 61 artists and collectives will be taking part in the biennial, with a total of more than 70 individual participating artists across 21 venues and external areas.

“As the event has grown, we have expanded from contour 556, centred on Lake Burley Griffin and Canberra City,” says director Neil Hobbs.

“This year, we extend to the National Arboretum (contour 656), the University of Canberra (contour 606) as well as maintaining and building further on our presence in North and South Canberra, at height 556, the contour level of Lake Burley Griffin.”

The Biennial is also partnering with more private and public galleries and cultural spaces in inner north and south Canberra, with new venues for 2022 including 1 Constitution Place, Manning Clark House, Front Gallery, Beaver Galleries, and Newcastle House, as well as the University of Canberra and the National Arboretum.

In addition to transforming Canberra’s iconic lake foreshore to promote participating artists and performers, Canberra Art Biennial aims to measurably transform public space through public art and public performance interventions. The Biennial interrogates the relationships between artworks and space; artists and the public; and the ways in which art can influence how the public perceive and remember space.

To find out more, visit https://contour556.com.au.

This article was posted 27 September 2022.

Image: Lymesmith (aka Sonia van de Haar), ‘Brutal Transformations: National Carillion’, PASTEUP PROJECT, 2022.

Featured thumbnail image: Brett Stone, ‘Lake Burley Griffin, Dusk’, 2022. Ceramic, various dimensions.

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