Discover new artistic talent in unusual places at the Liverpool Biennial

The 2010 Liverpool Biennial is underway with work from more than 900 international artists on show across the city in venues ranging from the reputable Tate Liverpool to the unlikely: a half-completed nightclub as well as a disused furniture store and, as above, a 'living' window display.

Lewis Biggs, the artistic director of this year's biennial - themed Touched - wants the event to have a 'holistic' feel. 'To be touched, it is necessary to be bold, to be vulnerable', says Biggs. Lorenzo Fusi, the curator for this year's biennial, found his own interpretation: 'In the public realm the boundaries between the makers and consumers of art are often blurred […] it becomes a case of what is being ‘touched’, and by whom?'.

Participating artists have approached the theme in a physical or metaphorical way. Wolfgang Tillmans and Franz West are taking part, exhibiting at the Walker Gallery and the Tate Liverpool respectively. West has interpreted the theme literally and is displaying interactive pieces that visitors can sit or lie on.

Inquisitive visitors and passers-by alike will stumble across Korean artist Do-Ho Suh’s Bridging Home - a striking life sized Seoul house, squashed in-between two Victorian buildings. While those walking down Renshaw Street should see Ryan Trecartin’s trilogy of high-definition videos, Trill-ogy Comp being screened in the otherwise empty basement of Rapid - a former furniture shop. Daniel Knorr's The Naked Corner (seen above) is one of a number of window displays protesting against the greed of global corporations. 

'Art is a great way to empower people', says Fusi, 'and if I can facilitate this process, I’ll have succeeded in my role.' If you haven't already, pay a trip to the Beatles' home town and get involved discovering new artistic talent in the most unusual of places.

Catherine Hudson