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From Ouning’s site here is the HK Shenzhen (almost typed Shanzhai) Biennale statement with video

Snippet:
The Biennale phenomenon originated in Venice a hundred years ago. An evolution of the world expositions popular in the 19th century, it is a form closely associated with the rise of the nation-states and their need to claim sovereignty. The Venice Biennale — a living fossil of the history of the biennale system — maintained the tradition of organizing content according to nationality, a feature which has resulted in the establishment of “national pavilions”. In the past hundred years, radical changes within human history and society have helped to propagate biennales; and as it stands now, there are more than three hundred of them taking place all over the world. It is worth noting, however, that with the end of the cold-war era and the integration of the global economy, the concept of “nation-state” has itself been taking a less significant role. Biennales, in turn, have become less concerned with national identity and more closely resemble competitions between individual cities. Cities around the world swarm to the biennale model, creating cultural, artistic and other spectacles to attract multinational capital and visitors. The resulting boom of the travel industry has also triggered the regeneration of cities in the post-industrial era and, in Saskia Sassen’s terms, has turned them into “Global Cities” — nodes on a chain of global economy, financial markets and culture.

Is this the only reason behind the worldwide prosperity of biennales? Are biennales the “magic bullet” for a city’s regeneration? Is there a new possibility for this 100-year-old model? For the Shenzhen & Hong Kong Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism (hereafter “SZHKB”) — a newcomer to the scene — these questions are inevitable.