International 06 responds to the personal readings of Liverpool made by consultant curators Gerardo Mosquera and Manray Hsu. Both see art channelling energy into and within the city. Mosquera is struck by how Liverpool developed with the historical process of Europe’s expansion and imperial enterprise. His reaction is symbolically to reverse the direction of colonisation by proposing artists’ practices from the Americas and Asia to engage with the city’s post-imperial present. Hsu is concerned with the flow of energy through the built environment and has proposed a number of commissions for nodal points throughout the city – acupuncture for the built environment, or ‘archipuncture’ as Hsu calls it.

Tate Liverpool showcases the work of fifteen of today’s most exciting international artists, most of whom have made new work especially for the exhibition. Urban regeneration, personal and geographical histories, memories and traces of other times and places are some of the themes explored, along with a story of when the fish first met the chip. Installed in the Albert Dock, the mysterious sequential splashes of Brian Tolle’s Waylay activates the site and reminds us of its past and present significance to the city. Monica Bonvicini presents a spectacular installation made of glass and light whose scale and violence powerfully confront the imposing architecture of the Gallery. Julianne Swartz has given the entire building a personality and has enabled it to speak to us as we navigate its spaces.

Look out for more exciting installations around the Albert Dock.