Go beyond borders at the 24th Biennale of Sydney

The University of Sydney is a proud exhibition partner of the 24^th Biennale of Sydney, a free public arts festival and the largest of its kind.

Running until 10 June 2024, this year the exhibition is titled Ten Thousand Suns, traversing the resilience of the human spirit and the power of collective expression through the diverse histories and perspectives of 96 artists from around the world.

The Chau Chak Wing Museum on our Camperdown/Darlington Campus is hosting 20 of these artists, and includes works on truth-telling and the Australian Stolen Generation, tattooing traditions of the Baiga tribe in central India, coloniality, dance and trance culture in Asia, and much more.

We caught up with Luke Parker, Exhibition Manager at the Chau Chak Wing Museum, to find out his highlights of Ten Thousand Suns and his advice for students interested in working in the arts.

Why you should visit Ten Thousand Suns

Art has the power to educate and inspire, provoke and inform, awe and confront.

Ten Thousand Suns at the 24^th Biennale of Sydney gives you the unique opportunity to experience a collective body of work spanning different genealogies by artists from diverse backgrounds.

“This is the first time that we have been an exhibition partner for the Biennale, and it is a huge privilege for us to be a part of the biggest contemporary art festival in Australia,” Luke said.

Some of the artists exhibited are not widely known in the global arts scene, providing a renewed and hopeful perspective on global issues like queer resilience and the climate crisis.

“Ten Thousand Suns offers a fascinating look at what is happening in the world, and what is interesting younger artists, including social and political situations, and dialogues around gender and identity,” Luke explained.

It’s also a chance to connect with the rich heritage of Australian culture, celebrating First Nations technologies and knowledges while acknowledging the reality of the struggles these communities face.

“The exhibition is very historically aware, and really engages with the Australian context, particularly the experience of our First Nations peoples. It's a very positive Biennale, maintaining a sense of optimism and hope which is uplifting, especially when there is so much darkness in the world,” Luke added.

Not sure where to start? Luke's highlights of Ten Thousand Suns include an installation by Citra Sasmita, a contemporary artist from Bali whose work upends normative constructs of gender and challenges the myths and misconceptions of Balinese art and culture.

“Citra Sasmita is an incredible young artist who is reinvigorating the traditional art of kamasan painting, which is usually made by men. Citra has created three amazing suspended scroll paintings that put women in the centre of traditionally male-dominated mythologies," Luke said.

Another highlight is a video piece by Choy Ka Fai, a Berlin-based Singaporean artist whose multidisciplinary practice speculates on realms of reality other than our own through dance, media art and performance.

"Choy Ka Fai's video work was made especially for the Biennale, featuring the Dewi Arum Girls, stars of TikTok, and traces the history of cross-cultural music and dance in Indonesia," said Luke.

A particularly memorable experience for Luke during the installation process was handling the important work of the artists involved.

“It was a pretty incredible experience for us taking the Martin Wong paintings out of their crates. He was a Chinese-American painter who died in the 1990s of AIDS,” he said.

This Biennale is the first time that a substantial body of Martin Wong’s work has been shown in Australia.

“It was an honour to be handling Martin Wong’s paintings, to be seeing them up-close, and also very sad as his life was really truncated by the HIV epidemic, like so many queer artists of that period."

Interested in working in the museum space?

As an Exhibition and Projects Manager, Luke manages around ten new exhibitions and displays per year for the Chau Chak Wing Museum. He is responsible for ensuring projects successfully progress from conceptual development to final delivery, while continuing to plan for future projects.

“When I am not in installation mode, I am planning and working with the team on upcoming projects; we work on some of our larger projects up to two years in advance,” he said.

“My weeks are typically spent in project meetings with our internal teams, or with the designers or artists we are working with, as well as identifying and planning for all the different deliverables to come together."

The best bit about Luke’s job?

“The favourite part of my job is install, when we see all of the hard work that the team has put in, and all the careful planning, turn into a reality.”

If you’re interested in curating art or working in the museum exhibition space, Luke recommends diversifying your experience early on and exploring opportunities through internships or volunteering.

“I started working in museums and galleries when I was a student, at the Museum of Contemporary Art. It's great to get experience across different aspects of museums; early on I worked in education and front of house, then I moved into exhibition installation, and then finally ended up in exhibition management.

“Internships are a great way to get a taste of different aspects of museums, and many courses now offer them as part of your study. Volunteering is another way to build experience. I think if you can get a foot in the door and demonstrate your keenness and passion for working in the arts, then opportunities will flow from there.”

Internship opportunities help you gain industry insights and develop new practical skills before graduating. Explore possible pathways to internship opportunities available at the Chau Chak Wing Museum and find out more about our arts industry placement programs online.

Over three months, the 24^th Biennale of Sydney is showcasing 96 exceptional Australian and international artists across six iconic exhibition spaces in Sydney. Explore the full program and locations on the Biennale of Sydney website.