FRONT and center

Big Cleveland art showcase -- designed to be triennial -inspired by German exhibition

Cleveland philanthropist, collector and community leader Fred Bidwell is a big believer in the Northeast Ohio’s art scene.

For years, the former advertising and marketing entrepreneur searched for a way to expose the world to the region’s underrated image and pristine offerings.

Eventually, Bidwell decided to replicate Kassel, Germany’s quinquennial contemporary art exhibition documenta.

The result is the inaugural FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art: An American City exhibition, which appears July 14 through Sept. 30 around Northeast Ohio museums, civic institutions and alternative spaces.

“My thought was if this little town in Germany can do that, I think Cleveland can in the United States,” said Bidwell, who is on the board of the Cleveland Museum of Art and created contemporary art exhibition space Transformer Station.

“This is going to be one of the biggest contemporary-art events in the United States. This project has gotten the attention of the international art world. It’s been listed as one of the must-see exhibitions of 2018. People are excited about it.”

The creative exhibition composed of artist commissions, performances, films and public programs will showcase an ambitious roster of projects. Local, national and international artists were tasked with examining the ever-changing and politically urgent conditions of an American city.

“There are 28 venues and 114 artists working in all media from video to painting, sculpture and public art,” Bidwell said. “It’s a way to bring the world’s attention to the amazing cultural resources in Cleveland and Northeast Ohio.

“It’s also going to be a fantastic arts-and-culture experience for the people who live here. I think people in this part of the country tend to not appreciate what they’ve got until someone from the outside comes in and says, ‘Wow, that’s incredible!’ It’s triennial, so I’m already planning for 2021. The idea is to, over time, become one of the most important destinations for contemporary art in the world. But 2018 is just a start.”

The free FRONT opening concert celebration featuring Congolese act Jupiter & Okwess takes place from 7:30 to 9 p.m. along Euclid Avenue in Cleveland.

SUBMITTED PHOTOS Performance artists Asian Dope Boys will be involved with the upcoming FRONT International.

Cleveland philanthropist, collector and community leader Fred Bidwell intends for FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art: An American City exhibition to happen every three years. The innuagural showcase gets underway July 14.

This is a work by Elizabeth Emery.