ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines the means by which the strengths as well as the weaknesses of the Biennale of Dakar can be evaluated. The Biennale of Dakar is the result of a double paternity, of the artistic community and of the state of Senegal. The state’s tutelage is manifest with a permanent structure: the Secretariat General of the Biennale, which is tied to the Ministry of Culture and destined to continue to direct the organization of the event. The lack of sustainable developmental framework for the near and long term and of the professionalization of personnel precludes the resolution of the Biennale’s artistic problems. The successive personnel responsible for the Biennale have certainly put in thorough efforts to give the institution identity and meaning. The Biennale is generally viewed as a cultural institution that serves and is tied to the Senegalese state. The Biennale of Contemporary African Art is an institution of the state of Senegal.
