Principles:
No tickets.
No commerce.
Site-specific.
Dates spread only by word of mouth.
Respect the local community.
Participation is required (this is not a spectator sport).
Values:
Accessibility.
Deep engagement with the local community.
Emphasis on site-specific work.
Mission:
Channel the grassroots creative energy inspired by Bombay Beach into a symbiotic system that supports both the Biennale artists and residents.
Land Acknowledgement:
We acknowledge that the land on which the Bombay Beach Biennale takes place is the land of the Torres-Martinez Cahuilla Band of Indians, the original sovereign tribe of Lake Cahuilla. We also want to acknowledge the Augustine Band of Cahuilla Indians, with whom we are grateful to have a relationship through the Temalpakh farm.
Land acknowledgements are commonplace, and often take the place of healing and dedication to repair. The organizers of the Bombay Beach Biennale understand that acknowledging we are on stolen land is not the same as reparations. Learn more about the Torres-Martinez Cahuilla at www.torresmartinez.org.
About
The Bombay Beach Biennale is a renegade celebration of art, music, and philosophy that takes place on the literal edge of western civilization - the shores of the Salton Sea.
It was founded in 2015 as a public arts event untethered from the commercial art world of galleries, museums, and art fairs, and as a tool to amplify the largely unknown and ignored ecological crisis that is the Salton Sea.
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The Biennale is an entirely free and public happening. Everything we do is open to anyone who can manage to find their way to Bombay Beach. Public offerings include weekly programming of workshops, performances, community meetings, and screenings. During our climactic weekend, we have three full days of programming with open gallery exhibits, a film festival, a literary festival, a philosophy conference, live music, and dance/theater performances.
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The Official Biennale Season begins January 1st of each year, and concludes in a celebratory weekend in the spring, the dates of which are spread only by word-of-mouth. While in season, the Bombay Beach Biennale transforms the abandoned housing, vacant lots, and decaying shoreline of the Salton Sea into a unique canvas for creative expression, social practice, and critical thought.
Photo by Scott Pasfield