“At the moment, it seems to be the art world’s medium of choice. Admired for its purity and subversive spirit, it is ubiquitous in gallery and museum exhibitions, whether on its own or as an active ingredient in video, installation art, sound art and photography. And performance art – also known as performance – is often the ghost in the machine in even the most static of objects; there is hardly a work of art with a scratchable surface that can’t be assigned so-called performative aspects. The biennial has emerged – without corporate sponsorship or even a sponsoring institution – seemingly out of thin air, hard work and fortuitous timing.”