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The SACO Contemporary Art Biennial, presented by Escondida | BHP, invites creators from around the world to apply to the open call for SACO1.2 Dark Ecosystems. The call will be open from July 29 to October 29, 2024, so that artists from all over the world can send their proposals to be part of the exhibition that will be located, as is tradition, at the Melbourne Clark Historic Pier in Antofagasta.

The exhibition event, which is financed by the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage of Chile, will be held from June to September 2025, and in its twelfth version emphasizes the connection between art and science, inspired by the resistance of the extremophiles that inhabit the Atacama Desert.

“We especially invite creators who understand the public space as the most suitable and transversal place for the encounter with the spectator, who seek an open dialogue with all layers of the city. I have no doubt that this call will generate much interest, both for the theme and for the place to intervene”, mentioned SACO director Dagmara Wyskiel.

The selection of the seven site specifics will be in charge of an international jury composed of professionals from various fields, who will evaluate the quality, relevance to the space and primarily, the relationship of the projects with the curatorial concept of the edition. The names of this year’s jury will be announced in the coming weeks.

The chosen creators will experience a 10-day residency at Antofagasta, where they will be able to materialize and assemble their works, which will be displayed at the Historical Pier from July to September 2025. After the opening, they will participate in a trip to contextualize the territory, to the town of Quillagua, the driest place in the world.

“The history of science has shown us that we only look where we expect to find something. It seems reasonable, but it is very limiting, because the dark ecosystems inhabit inaccessible and inhospitable areas, both in our minds and on the planet,” says the curatorial text of the SACO1.2 Biennial. You can read the full version at https://bienalsaco.com/, where the guidelines and application form are also available.