Current Seen: Rochester Small Venue Biennial

The Central Library of Rochester & Monroe County is proud to be a part of this year’s Small-Venue Rochester Biennial for Contemporary Art, “Current Seen,”. The biennial includes more than 20 exhibitions and events organized by both experienced and emerging curators spanning three generations. Current Seen supports the region’s growing contemporary art community by bringing new curatorial voices and new artists together near East Ave. and Main St., connecting audiences along these historic streets. Core Venues (Rochester Contemporary Art Center, Rochester Public Library, Visual Studies Workshop, RIT City Space, and Framework Venues (galleries, community, alternative spaces, and pop-up venues) host curated exhibitions of local and national artists related to the general theme: Our Current Moment / Our Changing City. Sites are within two blocks of East Ave. & Main St. between Prince St. & King St. Most exhibitions will open to the public starting October 4, 2019.

Now focus branded, Current Seen expands upon the 2017 program to bring together more community partners and create a contiguous string of contemporary visual art exhibitions, pop-ups, and public art along East Ave. and Main St. This geographic focus addresses the corridor as both a dividing line and a connective thread.

Current Seen draws upon various models, yet is dedicated to supporting Rochester’s small and mid-sized venues who are committed to advancing the regional art community. Like the influential 4th Berlin Biennial was built upon the historic and complicated Auguststraße, Current Seen laces together programs near some of Rochester’s most recognizable addresses, and offers a new history of the corridor by Gerry Szymanski and Kyle Semmel. Like Rochester’s own Wall Therapy has mixed international and local artists to build a highly visible mural arts program, Current Seen features artists ranging from the legendary British filmmaker John Maybury to regionally emerging artists exhibiting in their first solo exhibition post-graduation.

Building upon First Friday, Current Seen is intended to foster collaboration, help spaces achieve greater collective impact, celebrate the act of curation, and aid artists in reaching new expanded audiences. The list of programs includes more than 20 exhibitions and events organized by both experienced and emerging curators spanning three generations. Organizers are named on each individual exhibition page. A series of Thursday night after-parties are planned and will be hosted by Current Seen partners. The lead organizer of Current Seen is Bleu Cease, Executive Director of RoCo.

Sites & Hours

Sites are within 2 blocks of East Ave. & Main St. between Prince St. & King St. Most exhibitions will open to the public on First Friday, October 4. Nearly all venues will be open Thursdays 1-5 pm, Fridays 1-9 pm, and Saturdays 1-5 pm. Some venues are open additional hours. Exhibitions are free or nearly free. Public Art projects are available to be experienced 24/7. Current Seen is on view October 4 – November 17.