Melbourne International Biennial 1999

The Melbourne International Biennial was a large scale art exhibition of over 60 local and international artists held over six weeks in 1999 in a disused telephone exchange and office building in the central city of Melbourne, Australia, along with eleven 'national pavilions' in existing public and private galleries. Despite its popular and critical success, it proved to be a one off event.

It was an initiative of the City of Melbourne, who provided the bulk of the public funding, in partnership with Arts Victoria, the Victorian Department of Premier and Cabinet, the Ian Potter Museum of Art (part of The University of Melbourne). Originally called Melbourne Arts International, the event later changed name once the University of Melbourne became a partner, and brought in Frances Lindsay as director, and curator Juliana Enberg as artistic director, who initiated a successful fund-raising campaign that raised another $1 million of in-kind sponsorship.^[1] The event was titled "Signs of Life", and ran from 14 May through 27 June 1999. It occupied the semi-gutted spaces of an 8 storey former Telstra telephone exchange building, on the corner Russell Street and Little Collins Street, which was about to be converted into apartments.^[2] The event proved hugely popular, visited by 21,000 people, and garnered critical approval.^[3]^[4]

According to Enberg, "[Signs of Life was designed to exhibit] a very human set of projects, as should be the case as we leave the twentieth century and begin to engage with the next millennial frontier."^[5]

Despite the success, further funding from the City of Melbourne and the confirmation of Enberg as artistic director for the next Biennial in 2001,^[1] the institutions attached to the project eventually pulled out, making the 1999 Biennial the first and last.

The artists in the show included:^[6]

Following a method deployed by other art biennials like Venice Biennale and São Paulo Art Biennial, the Melbourne Biennale featured 11 'national pavilions' in existing public and private galleries across the city. Participants included:^[2]