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A candid review of the 25th Biennale of Sydney, spanning five venues across Greater Sydney: from a regional gallery that got everything right to an old Power Station full of missed opportunities.

I spent 10 hours at the media preview visiting all five venues: Lewers Penrith Regional Gallery, Chau Chak Wing Museum, Campbelltown Arts Centre, Art Gallery of New South Wales and White Bay Power Station. This isn't a comprehensive report, it’s my personal takeaway on what works (and what fails) when it comes to installation art at an international exhibition.

The 25th Biennale of Sydney, titled Rememory and curated by Hoor Al-Qasimi, demonstrates something that's come up again and again on this podcast: you can have prestigious artists, important topics and historic venues, but if the lighting is wrong, if there's nowhere to sit, if the space outshines the art… it doesn't work.

What I cover:

• Why Lewers: Penrith Regional Gallery was the standout venue

• Some highlighted works from each venue

• The 11-minute sound installation no one experiences beyond 15 seconds – and other accessibility challenges

• Documentation vs art – where is the line?

• A moment of comparison: do island Biennales create better experiences?

00:32 Biennale of Sydney Facts

02:57 Penrith Gallery Highlight

05:32 Everyone’s Favorite Installation

08:06 Chau Chak Wing Museum

10:31 Campbelltown Art Centre - Documentary Debate

13:21 Art Gallery of NSW Picks

17:12 White Bay Venue Challenges

22:26 Video Overload Critique

26:32 Installation Missteps

32:48 Final Takeaways

Biennale of Sydney 2026: Rememory is on view until 14 June 2026, free entry

More info: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/

Review by art critic Christopher Allen: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/culture/worse-than-anticipated-how-the-sydney-biennale-became-a-site-of-mediocrity-and-irrelevance/news-story/efd37fe54c91806748fd89fda76f65f6

Also mentioned in this episode:

Biennale of Sydney: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/ | https://www.instagram.com/biennalesydney/ | @biennaleofsydney

Venice Biennale episode: https://installationartpodcast.com/bonus-013

Helsinki Biennial episode: https://installationartpodcast.com/bonus-039

Lewers: Pentrith Regional Art Gallery: https://www.penrithregionalgallery.com.au/ | https://www.instagram.com/penrithregionalgallery/

Nora Adwan: https://noraadwan.com/home.html | https://www.instagram.com/adwan.nora/

Chau Chak Wing Museum: https://www.sydney.edu.au/museum/ | https://www.instagram.com/ccwm_sydney/

Michael Dagostino: https://www.sydney.edu.au/museum/about-us/our-people.html

Ema Shin: https://emashin.org/home.html | https://www.instagram.com/ema.shin/

Tuan Andrew Nguyen: https://www.tuanandrewnguyen.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/tuan.andrew.nguyen/

Cambelltown Arts Centre: https://www.campbelltownartscentre.com.au/Home | https://www.instagram.com/campbelltownartscentre/ | @campbelltownartscentre8258

Hoor Al-Qasimi: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/hoor-al-qasimi/ | https://www.instagram.com/hooralq/

Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige: https://hadjithomasjoreige.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/studiohadjithomasjoreige/

Art Gallery of NSW: https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/

Kuba Dorabialski: https://www.kubadorabialski.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/kubadora/

Mia Wasikowska: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1985859/ | https://www.instagram.com/mia_wasikowska_/

Taysir Batniji: https://www.taysirbatniji.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/taysir_batniji/

Kapwani Kiwanga: https://www.kapwanikiwanga.org/

Ron Mueck: https://ropac.net/artists/63-ron-mueck/ | https://www.instagram.com/ronmueckart/

Mike Hewson: https://mikehewson.co.nz/ | https://www.instagram.com/mikehewson/

MCA: https://www.mca.com.au/ | https://www.instagram.com/mca_australia | @mcaaustralia

White Bay Power Station: https://www.whitebaypowerstation.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/whitebaypowerstation/

Christopher Allen: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Allen_(critic)

Cockatoo Island: https://www.cockatooisland.gov.au/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/harbourtrust/ | @HarbourTrust2088

Frank Sweeney: https://franksweeney.art/ | https://www.instagram.com/frankbeee/

Hui Ye: https://yehui.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/huiyeist/

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

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Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/