Shanghai Biennale takes a global perspective

"How to attract enough attention in a post-Expo Shanghai is a daunting task for us," says Xu Jiang, founder and key organizer of the Eighth 2010 Shanghai Biennale, slated to run from Oct 24 through Feb 28, 2011.

While the Seventh Shanghai Biennale, held in 2008, with the theme of Trans-locomotion, reportedly attracted over 3 million visitors, two times more than previous biennales, "the timing for this year's biennale is unique", says Gao Shiming, an executive curator for the event.

To retain the popularity of the eighth biennale, the curatorial team has come up with a novel approach, kick starting the event with the somewhat abstract theme of "Rehearsal", Gao says.