How does one describe the 27th São Paulo Bienal, other than "massive", "gigantic", and "overwhelming"? Opening night was October 5 and I was lucky enough to attend with a few friends visiting from New York. We did our best to walk through as much of the show as possible, but the amount of works on display is dizzying -- not to mention the fact that I hadn't had a chance to eat all day, and was already feeling light-headed. I went back yesterday for a second look and I tackled about half of the exposition. A third trip will be required to visit the other half.

The Bienal's three-story home in Ibirapuera Park is gigantic (there's that word again) and non-partitioned, echoing the theme "How to Live Together" while lending itself to several large-scale installations and an embarrassment of artistic riches. Many other galleries in São Paulo are celebrating the Bienal with simultaneous shows, such as the Paralela show and the group Brazilian show at the MAM. Is it true that there can be too much of a good thing?

For a full list of artists and biographies, check out the Bienal special created by Brazilian arts magazine Bravo!.