The 24th edition of the Biennale de Arte Paiz, titled "El Arból del Mundo" ("The Tree of Life"), has opened in Guatemala City and Antigua Guatemala. Under Italian curator Eugenio Viola, the biennial has expanded from 30 to 46 artists and doubled its venues from 5 to 10, including the Museo Nacional de Arte de Guatemala (MUNAG) and La Nueva Fabrica. The dates have shifted to December to attract visitors from Miami Art Week and Zona Maco in Mexico City. The show features textile works, research-based art, and ecological themes, with highlights including a street installation by Erick Boror.
This expansion matters because the Biennale de Arte Paiz, named after the Fundación Paiz (a cultural non-profit backed by the Paiz family's supermarket fortune), is attempting to scale up from relative obscurity to a position on the global biennial circuit. The show's embrace of Indigenous wisdom and ecological politics offers a contrast to neighboring countries' courting of reactionary political trends. While the biennial shows growing pains, it represents a significant effort to put Guatemalan contemporary art on the international map during a turbulent period for both the art industry and Central American politics.