"The fifth edition of the
Biennale of Contemporary Art took place at the historic location
of the Fortezza da Basso from 3-11 December 2005. This edition
closed with a large public atendance and a happy presence of more
than 700 artists worldwide. Each day of the fifth edition was
studded with collateral events and conferences, such as that of
Gregorio Luke, Director of the MOLAA at Long Beach, of Rosa Tejada
from the Metropolitan Museum, New York, of that given by R.B.
Bhaskaran, President of the Lalit Kala, National Academy of Art,
India. Ambassadors, cultural ambassadorial attachés, consuls,
directors of foreign cultural institutes in Italy were present
at the inauguration on December 3rd 2005, along with personalities
from the world of art and culture, all of whom were welcomed by
the Historic Florentine Procession in traditional Renaissance
costume and by the Gonfalon of the City of Florence. The Biennale,
in collaboration with the United Nations, officially participates
at the “Dialogue between Civilizations” program, putting
into practice the thoughts expressed by Kofi Annan: “I believe
that dialogue is an opportunity for people coming from different
cultures and traditions to get to know each other better, whether
they live at the opposite ends of the world or whether they live
in the same street”"
