{"id":326146,"date":"2023-03-09T18:50:12","date_gmt":"2023-03-09T21:50:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/bienal-de-sharjah-2023-prioriza-obras-do-sul-global\/"},"modified":"2023-03-09T18:51:54","modified_gmt":"2023-03-09T21:51:54","slug":"sharjah-biennial-2023-focuses-on-global-south","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/sharjah-biennial-2023-focuses-on-global-south\/","title":{"rendered":"Sharjah Biennial 2023 focuses on Global South"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sharjah \u2013 \u201cMy best friend growing up was white. One day she asked her mother when I was going to get better,\u201d narrated Brazilian visual artist Aline Motta<\/strong> in the work \u2018A \u00c1gua \u00e9 uma m\u00e1quina do tempo\u2019 [\u2018Water is a time machine,\u2019 in free translation], on display at the 15th Sharjah Biennial<\/strong>, in the United Arab Emirates. According to her, the work focuses mainly on the story of her great-great-grandmother Ambrosina, who lived in downtown Rio de Janeiro at the turn of the 19th to 20th centuries. \u201cContrasting with the present, I also report on the death of my mother, who passed away in 2011, and how the life stories of these women are shuffled and intertwined over time,\u201d said Aline.<\/p>\n

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Aline Motta\u2019s video work<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Combining archival material and new images with spoken poetry, the video<\/strong> brings a dialogue between memory and historical record, past and present, and personal and collective spheres. The biennial highlights that, by alternating these elements, the artist presents a reinterpretation of a time that talks \u2013 a lot \u2013 about racial oppression, vulnerability, and family.<\/p>\n

Aline is one of the 150 artists<\/strong> and collectives participating in the Sharjah Biennial 15: Thinking Historically in the Present<\/strong>, which returns after being postponed by the pandemic. \u201cIt is a biennial in which most of the works establish a strong relationship with archives, whether intimate and personal like mine or historical and institutionalized,\u201d said the Brazilian.<\/p>\n

Conceived by Nigerian Okwui Enwezor<\/strong>, who died in 2019 at 55, and curated by the director of the Sharjah Art Foundation, Hoor Al Qasimi, the event reflects on his work. For organizers, Enwezor transformed contemporary art<\/strong> and influenced the evolution of institutions and biennials worldwide, including Sharjah.<\/p>\n

Hoor Al Qasimi<\/strong> revealed the touchstone was Documenta11 in 2002 \u2014 the artistic direction of the event in Germany was in charge of the Nigerian, the first time someone from outside Europe was invited. \u201cI didn\u2019t know Okwui at the time, but as someone coming from a non-Western country or space and going to Kassel, Germany, to see an exhibition where all of our voices were present \u2014 basically a platform for the discussion of the Global South \u2014 it was very inspiring and a novelty at the time, so I think that was something Okwui brought to the scene,\u201d said Hoor in an interview from Sharjah.<\/p>\n

The director of the Biennial, who visited Brazil a few times, interpreted and developed Enwezor\u2019s proposal, which gave the title to the current edition. Before he died, Enwezor handed over the task to the Emirati woman. For Al Qasimi, the result is a tribute to Enwezor, a manifestation of the learning that came from him. In the curatorial statement, she writes this year\u2019s event is not just an independent biennial. \u201cIt is the culmination of all relationship-building and conversation-building predecessors that developed for over three decades, both inside and outside Sharjah, deterritorializing our local context with its regional equivalents across the postcolonial constellation of the Global South,\u201d said the curator.<\/p>\n

Through over 300 works<\/strong>, the biennial proposes a transcultural universe in which artists present perspectives on nation, tradition, ethnicity, gender, body, and imagination, as stated by Al Qasimi. The works can be seen in different locations spread across five cities in the emirate of Sharjah, which is reputed as a regional cultural hub. Sharjah was elected the Arab Capital of Culture<\/strong> in 1998 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel what I did was also to place myself as a woman in a space where many women<\/strong> were invited. There is a strong female voice in this Biennial, which I think is very important,\u201d pointed out Al Qasimi, who curated the Lahore Biennial (Pakistan) in 2020 and contributed to several other international exhibitions.<\/p>\n

Among the artists are names from Latin America<\/strong>, such as Cuban-born Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, Argentine Gabriela Golder, Peruvian Flavia Gandolfo, and Colombian Doris Salcedo. In addition to female voices, Al Qasimi brought artists with different backgrounds. \u201cIt also brings an intergenerational discussion; we\u2019ll have some younger and well-established artists,\u201d she commented. But there are no favorites. Al Qasimi refuses to choose a favorite work. She says every art piece is important to her.<\/p>\n

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Work on display at the Sharjah Biennial<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Regarding how visitors can experience the current Biennial, which runs until June 11, the curator is curt: \u201cIt is essential people take their time. It\u2019s not a festival to come and go; it\u2019s not a celebration.\u201d Noting the earthquake that affected Syria and Turkey, Al Qasimi underscores the message she had just given: \u201cIt is very important this is a space for discussion, to think about the works people are seeing. It\u2019s not a sight to come and look at; it is not a celebration.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Sharjah Biennial, commemorating its 30th anniversary<\/strong> in 2023 \u2014 20 years of which were headed by Al Qasimi \u2014 does not seek a definitive answer to the questions raised, as pointed out in the curatorial statement. Al Qasimi\u2019s intention is not to position herself as a guide either. \u201cRather than focusing on any single curatorial voice, I believe it would be more constructive to collectively embrace the spirit of \u2018being guided\u2019 \u2014 by one another and our ever-evolving cross-cultural solidarities,\u201d she declared.<\/p>\n

At the end of the interview, Al Qasimi recalled when she took her father \u2014 Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, member of the Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Sharjah \u2014 to Al Dhaid, one of the Biennial venues. The leader emphasized the importance of each work displayed to the local community. \u201c[Each piece] talks about people\u2019s struggles, suffering, and history. Not in the way of victimization, but showing a space of shared solidarity, understanding, and I think there\u2019s something about coming together and telling stories you can find resonance,\u201d concluded the curator.<\/p>\n

Morocco-Brazil connection<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brazil is also featured in the work of Hassan Hajjaj. The Moroccan, who challenges Western perceptions of Arab culture, brought the documentary \u201cGnawa Capoeira Brothahood.\u201d The work deals with the similarities between capoeira<\/strong> [Brazilian dancing martial art] and gnawa \u2013 highlighting the shared origin between the practices. According to information supplied by the Biennial, the film shows contrasts and, at the same time, a connection between capoeira and gnawa that, despite being geographically separated, share history and aesthetics.<\/p>\n

The 15th Sharjah Biennial<\/a> opened on February 7. The event runs until June 11 in the emirate of Sharjah. Admission is free.<\/p>\n

Translated by El\u00fasio Brasileiro<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sharjah Biennial 15<\/div>\n
Press release<\/div>\n
Press release<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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