The ninth Biennale Gherdëina takes its title from a Ladin myth that is, in part, a cautionary tale. It narrates the series of tragedies that follows when the Fanes—the indigenous people of the Dolomites—betray a pact with their animal allies, the marmots. All their works are made collectively, feature animals as their primary subjects, and build on any mistakes, instead of erasing them. It’s a projection into a future that is unpredictable but laden with hope, stressing interdependence as a means of survival. Ortisei is surrounded by forests, so it feels natural for wood to form both material and motif in several works commissioned for the biennial.
