Hans Ulrich Obrist Curates 'Strange Rules' at Palazzo Diedo During Venice Biennale
During the 61st Venice Biennale, Palazzo Diedo presents 'Strange Rules,' an exhibition conceived by Hans Ulrich Obrist in collaboration with artists Holly Herndon and Mat Dryhurst, and co-curated with Adriana Rispoli. The show introduces 'protocol art,' shifting focus from finished objects to the systems, rules, and infrastructures that produce culture. It features interdisciplinary works by artists, scientists, and thinkers, including Trevor Paglen, Fabien Giraud, Stephanie Dinkins, Simon Denny, Philippe Parreno, and others. Visitors can participate in evolving works, such as Herndon and Dryhurst's installation where agents write software toward a collective goal, and Primavera De Filippi's plantoids that can be 'pollinated.' The exhibition builds on Obrist's long-term dialogue with Herndon and Dryhurst about protocol art, and follows over a hundred studio visits. It connects to Venice's multiple biennales (Film, Music) and will culminate in a book on protocol art. The project is presented by the Berggruen Institute.
Key facts
- Exhibition 'Strange Rules' opens during the 61st Venice Biennale at Palazzo Diedo.
- Conceived by Hans Ulrich Obrist with Holly Herndon and Mat Dryhurst, co-curated with Adriana Rispoli.
- Introduces 'protocol art' focusing on systems, algorithms, and infrastructures.
- Includes artists: Trevor Paglen, Fabien Giraud, Stephanie Dinkins, Simon Denny, Philippe Parreno, Lorenzo Senni, Primavera De Filippi, Agnieszka Kurant, Avery Singer, Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Ho Rui An, Ayoung Kim.
- Also features scientists Michael Levin and Ken Stanley, and thinker Venkatesh Rao.
- Herndon and Dryhurst's installation invites visitors to contribute to a cumulative memory system.
- Exhibition is part of ongoing research with over 100 studio visits over 18 months.
- A book on protocol art will be published toward the end of the year.
- Project connects to Venice Film Mostra and Music Biennale.
- Presented by Berggruen Institute, with Mario Codognato and Palazzo Diedo team.
Entities
Artists
- Hans Ulrich Obrist
- Holly Herndon
- Mat Dryhurst
- Adriana Rispoli
- Trevor Paglen
- Fabien Giraud
- Stephanie Dinkins
- Simon Denny
- Philippe Parreno
- Lorenzo Senni
- Primavera De Filippi
- Agnieszka Kurant
- Avery Singer
- Lawrence Abu Hamdan
- Ho Rui An
- Ayoung Kim
- Michael Levin
- Ken Stanley
- Venkatesh Rao
- Lorenzo Marsili
- Bettina Korek
- Eva Jäger
- Nicolas Berggruen
- Mario Codognato
- Barbara Vanderlinden
- Bruno Latour
- Rirkrit Tiravanija
- Molly Nesbit
- Agnès Varda
- Souleymane Bachir Diagne
- Ben Vickers
- Anne Stenne
Institutions
- Palazzo Diedo
- Berggruen Institute
- Serpentine
- Whitewall
- Wired Magazine
- The Wire
- Pace Gallery
- Jessica Silverman Gallery
- Kruapa-Tuskany Zeidler
- Venice Biennale
- Venice Film Mostra
- Venice Music Biennale
Locations
- Venice
- Italy
- Palazzo Diedo
- Giardini
- United Kingdom
- San Francisco
- New York