BIËNNALE VAN PARIJS 1985

A programme on the Paris Biennale in 1985, mainly focused on figurative art - “art on the wall”. During the mounting of the exhibitions in the ‘Grande Halle’, the camera zooms in on curators and organizers (Georges Boudaille, Kasper König, Alanna Heis, …), as well as artists like Keith Haring, David Hockney and Daniel Buren. Various conversations explore the use of art as a method of value judgement, the role of museums and television, and the individual nature of artistic experience.

Content:
00’00" Titles. 00’30" Plan of the Parc de la Villette, Paris, drawings and models of the Grande Halle. 01’10" Exterior views of the Grande Halle. 01’30" Pictures of the inauguration, visitors, photographers and Jack Lang, the Minister of Culture. 03’10" Georges Boudaille, the organizer, watching the exhibition being installed and talking with Daniel Buren. 05’00" Gérard Gassiot-Talabot speaking to Erro about hanging his paintings. 06’45" Pictures of Alanna Heiss and American artists. 07’50" Pictures of Kasper König helping to install works. 08’35" Achille Bonito Oliva, Kasper König and a few artists talking about the individual nature of artistic experience and of reasons artists have for choosing figurative art. 10’40" Works by Antoni Tapies, Valerio Adami, Erro, Leon Golub, Per Kirkeby, Anselm Kiefer, Georg Baselitz, Enzo Cucchi. Achille Bonito Oliva talking to Cucchi about his work. 15’20" Work by Mimmo Paladino. Achille Bonito Oliva on the function of art as a measure of value. 16’40" Pictures of works by Eric Fischl, Herbert Brandl, Gérard Garouste. 17’55" Keith Haring at work and then talking about his career to Joost Declercq. 23’15" Views of works by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Robert Combas, followed by picture of Combas at work. 24’30" Works by Sabina Mirri, Miguel Barcelo, Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke and David Hockney. 26’25" David Hockney criticizing television images, modernism and museums. 31’35" Works by A.R. Penck, Sandro Chia, Jean-Luc Vilmouth and Bill Woodrow. 40’55" Richard Deacon showing his sculptures. 44’05" Views of Anish Kapoor colouring his sculptures. 45’00" Daniel Buren explaining his work. 46’45" Christian Boltanski showing his work. 48’35" Views of Gilbert & George’s Death after Life. 49’25" Pictures of Jenny Holzer’s work. 50’55" Lawrence Weiner talking about his work The sands of here poured upon the sands of there. 52’25" Kasper König going round the Grande Halle justifying his selections, discussing the installation, the ambitions of Paris, the architecture of the Grande Halle and showing works by Thomas Schütte, Richard Deacon and Reinhard Mucha. 66’40" Credits. 67’40"
(Source: Jef Cornelis 1964 - 1990, Espace Art Contemporain : Maison de la culture et de la Communication de Saint-Etienne, 1991)