A dynamic exploration of cultural memory, migration, and ecological futures, featuring over 200 new commissions and over 650 works across 17 venues in Sharjah.
From left to right: Cassi Namoda, Kala vanga heti, 2024. From ‘Carapau in the deep abyss’, 2024. Commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation. Courtesy of the artist and Xavier Hufkens, Brussels; Alia Farid, Chibayish (still), 2023. Commissioned by The Vega Foundation and Doha Film Institute. Image courtesy of the artist; Michael Parekōwhai, He Kōrero Pūrākau mo te Awanui o Te Motu: Story of a New Zealandriver, 2011. Collection Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa; Güneş Terkol, Gori Leso Leso, 2024. Image courtesy of the artist; Akira Ikezoe, Bears on the Diagram of Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, 2021/2024, Commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation. Courtesy of the artist.
Sharjah Biennial 16: to carry (SB16) opened today, featuring over 650 works by nearly 200 participants, including more than 200 new commissions. Curated by Alia Swastika, Amal Khalaf, Megan Tamati-Quennell, Natasha Ginwala, and Zeynep Öz, the Biennial is centered around the title to carry, a multivocal proposition that explores the expansive questions of what and how we carry. It invites audiences to engage with the diverse perspectives and resonances of the five curators.
The Biennial’s works were presented alongside a dynamic program of activations, performances, music, and film at more than 17 venues across the Emirate of Sharjah, including Sharjah City, Al Hamriyah, Al Dhaid, and Kalba. SB16 delves into the ways we navigate life in spaces that are not our own, shaped by the cultures we hold. The title to carry connects stories and traditions across generations and cultures, asking what we bring with us when we travel, flee, survive, or stay. The Biennial provides a space for collective wayfinding, encouraging reflection during times of transition.
The five curators, each with their distinct processes, presented their projects both individually and collaboratively. Through artworks, workshops, publications, sonic experiences, and other activities, they sparked critical conversations, drawing from multiple geographies, languages, and perspectives. Their diverse approaches explored the question: What does it mean to carry a home, ancestors, and political formations with us?
- Alia Swastika focused on the interplay of power, poetics, politics, and the foundational role of women’s knowledge, as well as speculative futures through technological intervention.
- Amal Khalaf proposed storytelling, song, and divination as rituals for collective learning and resistance during political and environmental crises.
- Megan Tamati-Quennell explored land, impermanence, reciprocity, and respect from an Indigenous standpoint.
- Natasha Ginwala centered littoral sites in the Indian Ocean and Sharjah’s water wells, exploring ancestral memory and sonic remembrance.
- Zeynep Öz examined the societal and economic systems that respond to accelerated changes in technology and science.
The curatorial projects converged throughout the exhibition, with the curators reconfiguring works into hybrid constellations at each venue. These venues were often inspired by their cultural and historical contexts, creating a framework for collaborative curatorial expression.
Shared themes emerged, such as oceanic crossings, regional affinities, and cultural continuities, many connected to Sharjah’s coastal geographies and maritime history. Mariam M. Alnoaimi’s work addressed the Gulf region’s relationship with water bodies as living entities. Akinbode Akinbiyi’s photograph series Sea Never Dry (1982–ongoing) was displayed along Sharjah’s corniche. SERAPIS MARITIME created garments and objects using materials from Sharjah’s shipyards and industrial facilities. Cassi Namoda’s paintings depicted acts of labor and motherhood along Mozambique’s shoreline, while Megan Cope’s sculpture Kinyingarra Guwinyanba (2024) referenced deep geological time in Buhais Geological Park.
Artists addressed environmental injustice, colonial ties, and Indigenous knowledge systems. Yhonnie Scarce recreated the radioactive rain clouds from British nuclear tests in Australia through hand-blown glass yams. Adelita Husni-Bey’s new work, Like a Flood (2025), reflected on Libya’s failing water infrastructure and the impact of Italian colonialism. Alia Farid presented works examining ancient wetland communities in southern Iraq. Luana Vitra’s installation imagined a future devoid of mineral exploitation.
The Biennial also featured works by Faye HeavyShield, Rajni Perera, and Womanifesto, who explored women’s knowledge, mythologies, and political narratives. Helene Kazan reclaimed feminist histories through song, while Faye HeavyShield presented two works exploring land, language, and the body. Rajni Perera created femme hybrids inspired by South Asian mythology, embracing radical futurity.
Technology, both old and new, was another key theme. Akira Ikezoe presented paintings and animations addressing nuclear accidents, while Pratchaya Phinthong experimented with solar energy to enhance coral growth. Joe Namy’s sonic installation Dub Plants (2024–2025) examined the relationship between radio culture and agriculture in Sharjah. Jorge González Santos revived primal technologies involving fire, earth, clay, and plant knowledge, while Fernando Palma Rodríguez reimagined Indigenous robotic art as a blueprint for sustainability.
The Biennial emphasized collective processes through collaborations such as The Weaving Project, a residency led by Güneş Terkol, Salima Hakim, and Yim Yen Sum, exploring the tradition of weaving in Indonesia. Raven Chacon collaborated with Bedouin singers for a sound work in Al Madam. Ayşe İdil İdil, Betül Aksu, and Okyanus Çağrı Çamcı, with curator Merve Elveren, presented Day to Day, an open-ended project about personal transformation amidst political turmoil.
Sonic experiences were central to the Biennial, with works like Michael Parekōwhai’s playable piano and Zeynep Öz’s YAZ Publications, a series of books complemented by sound installations in Al Dhaid.
Sharjah Biennial 16 runs until 15 June 2025, offering visitors a wide range of programs, including screenings, workshops, and artist conversations. The official podcast will launch in the coming weeks, providing further insights from artists and curators.
For more information, visit sharjahart.org.
