This edition openly explores the intersections of identity, colonial histographies and political trauma through a lens that is deeply empathetic and socially consciousness, a report by Soniya Kirpalani (Images: An Artist Within)
Introduction: A Biennial of Significance
The 16th Sharjah Biennial (SB16), titled “To Carry” commenced and will be running from February 6 to June 15, 2025. The event continues to stand as a beacon of artistic innovation and cultural introspection, and as the longest running Biennial in the region, since its inception in 1993, continuing to show its dedication to the growth of contemporary art. Sheikha Hoor Al Qasimi dedicated the Biennial to her father, His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, acknowledging that it was his unwavering support and vision for Sharjah’s cultural initiatives that has set a new benchmark for this region.
Simultaneously she also applauded the work of the extremely dedicated team of Sharjah Art Foundation. Over the years, I have personally seen the evolution of this Biennial under her visionary leadership as it has now become a brave event, balancing both immersive and innovative. Sheikha Hoor’s unwavering leadership and commitment to creating authentic cultural, social and even political dialogues, has led to unprecedented openness, which is giving voice to the region’s artists from the underrepresented Global South to share their most pressing issues. This has made Sharjah Biennial one of the most critically acclaimed experience, which is enriching the cultural landscape of Sharjah and beyond.
This year, the Biennial was curated by a distinguished group of curators- Alia Swastika, Megan Tamati-Quennell, Natasha Ginwala, Zeynep Öz, and Amal Khalaf—who collectively weave a narrative that delves into the burden of memory, migration, survival, and resistance. The curators emphasize, openness, vulnerability, narratives of adaptation of civilization, supporting artists and creators who have been displaced by political turmoil, climate change, and historical injustices to creatively share their emotion and expression. This edition openly explores the intersections of identity ,colonial histographies and political trauma through a lens that is deeply empathetic and socially consciousness.
Featuring over 650 works by nearly 200 artists, with newly commissioned pieces hosted across 17 venues in Sharjah. SB16 is a multidisciplinary and creates multi-voiced dialogue, stirred by artists from diverse backgrounds and geographies, who use art, poetry, sound, song, performance, in an evocative manner to stir political, social, cultural and environmental challenges, in a subtle yet strong manner. Sheikha Hoor explains “At many instances, the artists and their processes engage ancestral technologies, they house a return of intergenerational knowledge, host forms of recovery and kinship in the face of planetary destruction, entwine somatic, energetic, and sonic fields.”
It is this stance which encouraged bold, yet sensitive creative narratives. “If to any degree this Biennial can be such a site of moving and being moved with ethics of tenderness and rage, shared witnessing and holding truth, it will be worthwhile in making room for the imprints of this time through creative retrieval.” Giving voice to art, performance and expression SB 16 spoke to challenges nations facing challenges, including Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan, Congo, and Armenia, urging attendees to remember those less fortunate, thus using art as an expression for the global solidarity.
SB16 invites us all to ask: What do we have ‘To Carry’ and how do we carry it forward?
