Tuesday 4 September 2007 19.00 – 21.00, The Romanian Cultural Centre, 8th floor, 54-62 Regent Street, London W1B 5RE; Tel. 020 7439 4052, ext 102; e-mail: mail@ratiufamilyfoundation.com; Entry is free but booking is essential. The presentation will focus on the cultural situation in Romania after the fall of communism and, in particular, on Iasi, a university city with more than 60.000 students situated in the East of Romania, close to the border with the Republic of Moldova. Matei Bejenaru will analyse the role of the Periferic Biennial in building and maintaining a local art scene open to international developments, in the context of all the hopes and inherent uncertainties of Romania's political and economic transition. Periferic Biennial is the most extensive contemporary art initiative in post-communist Romania, collecting and presenting a wide range of artistic attitudes concerned with the relationship between centre and periphery. Established in 1997 as a performance festival, Periferic transformed in 2003 into an international art biennial promoting local art production and developing collaborative projects with artists and curators throughout the world. The eighth edition of Periferic Biennial will take place in Iasi in October 2008. Matei Bejenaru is an artist and director of the Periferic Biennial in Iasi, Romania. Together with a group of artists and philosophers he founded the Vector Association in 2001, which organizes the Biennial and continuously supports local artists and art projects. He is also a member of the editorial staff of Vector - a magazine of art and culture in context, dedicated to contemporary art in South East European countries. As an artist, Bejenaru is interested in the way in which globalization affects post communist countries, changing mentalities and lifestyles. In 2003, during the 2nd edition of the Tirana Biennial, he installed a water post in the centre of the city offering free water distribution to its inhabitants. In 2005, he conceived a Travelling Guide for Romanian illegal workers, shown in 2006 at Thyssen-Bornemisza Contemporary Art in Vienna and in 2007 at the Prague Biennial 3 and at the Galeria Posibila in Bucharest. Details here (Romanian version only). Matei Bejenaru is currently in London at the invitation of Tate Modern museum, on a ICR – Romanian Cultural Institute residency. See details here. Organised by The Ratiu Foundation UK www.ratiufamilyfoundation.com