Curator Raphael Fonseca Advocates for Biennials to Prioritize General Public Engagement

Raphael Fonseca, curator of modern and contemporary Latin American art at the Denver Art Museum, argues that large-scale art events like biennials should primarily serve non-specialist audiences. Drawing from his personal experience attending the Seventh Festival Brasileiro de Cinema Universitário in Rio de Janeiro in 2002 and the São Paulo Bienal in 2006, Fonseca emphasizes how such events can introduce people to visual arts. He notes that biennials require significant resources and have environmental impacts due to artwork transportation and venue construction, making their educational role crucial. Fonseca compares biennials to sandcastles, suggesting each has unique characteristics shaped by local conditions and institutional dynamics. He highlights his diverse background working in Brazilian cultural institutions in roles including educator and museum guide, which he believes prepared him for the adaptable nature of biennial curation. Fonseca recently organized the 14th Mercosul Biennial and is co-curating two upcoming events: the Counterpublic triennial opening September 12 and the Sequences XIII biennial opening October 2027. He views biennials as experimental spaces with rapid decision-making that can influence artistic generations, while museums provide stability and preservation. Fonseca maintains that moving between these institutional contexts helps maintain focus on expanding public access to art.