The politics of local and global in biennials

This chapter examines the role of biennials as key cultural sites for mobilizing relationships between local and global scales. By analyzing the 12th edition of the Manifesta Biennial (held in Palermo in 2018) in terms of the local-global nexus and the methodological framework of syncretization, I seek to ask critical questions about overcoming the local-global dichotomy and reconstructing the conceptual genealogy of relevant contemporary debates. The ultimate aim is to question the arts’ entanglements with the social and political spheres, addressing contemporary art practices and institutions’ transformational impacts beyond the narratives they cultivate.