Palermo is host to Manifesta 12, The Planetary Garden

Manifesta is the world's only travelling biennial of contemporary art and culture and is celebrating its 12th edition in Palermo. Called “The Planetary Garden. Cultivating Coexistence”, the project explores the meaning of “coexistence” through the unique lens of Palermo - a crossroads of three continents in the heart of the Mediterranean.


Manifesta 12 is about to hit Palermo, the capital of Sicily and also the 2018 Capital of Culture and it is also the first edition to include not only traditional art curators but an interdisciplinary group of specialists in the curatorial team. Bregtje van der Haak is a renowned Dutch journalist and filmmaker; Andrés Jaque, is a Spanish architect, founder of the Office for Political Innovation and Visiting Professor at Princeton; Ippolito Pestellini Laparelli is an architect and partner at OMA, and Mirjam Varadinis is a Swiss contemporary art curator at Kunsthaus Zurich.
The curatorial project of Manifesta 12 “The Planetary Garden. Cultivating Coexistence” aims to investigate the concept of coexistence in its various forms, strongly underscored by Palermo's geographical position as a Mediterranean hub. The concept was extracted from the city through a preliminary phase of investigation by OMA, called “Palermo Atlas”. The goal was to gain a deeper understanding of the social, cultural and geographical textures of this complex, layered city, to highlight its existing opportunities and to understand contemporary transformations through “the eyes” of Palermo.
“The Planetary Garden. Cultivating Coexistence” will host four sections, each one touching on key topics of the concept: “Garden of Flows”, “Out of Control Room”, “City on Stage” and “Teatro Garibaldi” as the main centre of Manifesta 12 (currently hosting a pre-biennial programme “Aspettando Manifesta 12” - Waiting for Manifesta 12). 
Included in the biennial's official programme, the “Parcours” of Manifesta 12 target local and international audiences, inviting them to discover the material and immaterial heritage of Palermo. Visitors will have a choice of enjoying an accessible and walkable parcours or venturing further into the city to explore some of the long-term projects, particularly those located in the outskirts, designed to create a tangible legacy that will remain after the biennial is over. So what are you waiting for? Plan your trip to Palermo now (link itinerary).

Christiane Bürklein

Manifesta 12
from 16 June to 4 November 2018
Palermo, Sicily, Italy
Images: Courtesy of Manifesta 12
Find out more: http://m12.manifesta.org/