Sharjah Biennial

Sharjah Biennial is the longest-running contemporary art event in the UAE, gathering local and international talents and celebrating their contributions to the art world. Launched in 1993, the event truly ushered in a new era of contemporary art in the Gulf 10 years later, with the 2003 edition focusing on the discourses between aesthetics and politics through the work of 117 artists from 25 countries.

Over the last quarter of a century, Sharjah Biennial has become far more than an art fair. Its events portfolio includes film screenings, musical performances and a range of educational programmes that are suitable for all ages and abilities. Every event edition explores, through its various exhibits, a specific theme that reflects modern global issues. The 2017 Sharjah Biennial was themed Tamawuj, an Arabic word that means ‘a rising and falling of waves, a flowing, swelling, surging or fluctuation’. The event featured projects not only in Sharjah, but also in Ramallah, Beirut, Dakar and Istanbul.

The Sharjah Biennial has, without a doubt, helped shine a light on Sharjah as both a cultural hub and a participant in the global sustainability discourse.