Before the official opening ceremony and the press and trade day, the biennial unveils its indoor exhibition space. Welcomed in the ASL's newly refurbished premises to create a new exhibition space, we'll be happy to give you a sneak preview of the biennial.

• from 6:00 PM – Vernissage
• 18:30 – Curatorial visit by Bernard Vienat, Biennial Artistic Director

The Association pour la Sauvegarde du Léman (ASL) plays a special role in the Biennial, as both scientific advisor and exhibition venue. As well as exhibiting the work of 6 artists, a number of scientists working with the ASL have been involved in the creative phase of several artists' projects. Their participation was central, from the provision of their tools and expertise, to the breeding of certain biological organisms. The Badel/Sarbach artist duo, for example, developed a work based on quagga mussels in collaboration with ASL scientists.

The works on display at the association's headquarters reflect the shared interests of guest artists, researchers and mediators from this historic Geneva association. Hans Haacke's photographs reflect an early form of artistic activism in relation to water pollution, while the pieces presented by Mark Dion reveal the extent to which the relationship between human beings and nature has developed in abstract categories of thought, rather than with empathic sensitivity. Almost like an echo, the work of Pinar Yoldas evokes other small entities that are omnipresent in Lake Geneva, as well as in most of the world's waters. Through fiction, the artist creates an imaginary ecosystem in which microplastics have come to life.

Artists exhibiting : Flurina Badel & Jérémie Sarbach, Mark Dion, Hans Haacke, Diana Lelonek, Carmen Perrin, Pinar Yoldas