Great Theatre of the World , the title of the 2002 Taipei Biennial, is inspired by the title of a famous play by Pedro Calderon de la Barca (1600-1681). It is a sacramental play that depicts the fate of mankind through a play within a play. Taken as a metaphor for contemporary art, the notion of theater addresses sculpture, installation and storytelling as the domains in which creativity and innovation are more active in contemporary art.

The exhibition will address issues related to perception and understanding through the notion of an ancient, classical form of communication that finds itself disappearing. Indeed, theater has evolved, mutated and been absorbed by much more powerful media such as television and cinema. Great Theatre of the World considers the museum as a stage and the exhibition as a play to insist on the crucial importance of the live experiencing of things, of art, of reality. Contrary to the spectacular side of many exhibitions of contemporary art, the 2002 Taipei Biennial will focus on the intense experience of art using the senses of the eye and the ear.

Rather than adapting art to the available space (site specific art), the Great Theater of the World means to promote the concept that space is put at the service of art, and will present works by Taiwanese and international artists from different backgrounds and generations. The 2002 Taipei Biennial will look into the results of new forms of multi-disciplinary practices, in both traditional and new media.