The Sharjah Art Foundation () is a contemporary art and cultural foundation based in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, founded in 2009 by Hoor Al Qasimi, daughter of Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, a member of the Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates and current ruler of Sharjah, to support artists and artistic practice in the Sharjah communities, the UAE, and the region via different platforms that include Sharjah Biennial, the annual March Meeting, art residencies, production grants, commissions, art exhibitions, artistic research and publications. Its programme includes exhibitions of work by Arab and international artists, performances, music, film screenings, artist talks and educational activities for audiences ranging from children to adults. The foundation states that it aims to promote public learning and participation in art practice.
Sharjah Biennial Sharjah Biennial is an international art exhibition that takes place in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, once every two years. The first International Sharjah Biennial took place in 1993 under the organization of Sharjah Department of Culture and Information and later transferred to Sharjah Art Foundation, for management and organization since its creation in 2009. A Biennial Prize is awarded at the end of each exhibition by a jury of renowned art world figures.
March Meeting March Meeting is an annual gathering of international art practitioners and art institutions in the region. It is organized by Sharjah Art Foundation and was launched in 2008, to encourage regional art professionals to connect, partner and share ideas in the sphere of contemporary art.
Buildings As well as constructing Rain Room, a permanent home for the experiential artwork by art collective Random International, Sharjah Art Foundation has reconstructed and made significant additions to The Flying Saucer, Sharjah as well as to the Al Jubail Vegetable Market, the 1970s era Khor Fakkan Cinema, which is being redeveloped as a music school and a pyramid-roofed kindergarten which is being made into a community centre. In February 2023 it opened Kalba Ice Factory, a restoration by the Lima practice 51-1 Arquitectos of a disused 1970s fish-feed mill and ice store in Kalba on Sharjah's east coast, completed in time for the 2023 Sharjah Biennial.
Exhibition List of notable exhibitions organized by Sharjah Art Foundation: YearTitleCuratorArtists2009Disorientation II: The Rise and Fall of Arab CitiesJack Persekian2010A Retrospective: Tarek Al GhousseinJack PersekianTarek Al Ghoussein2011DriftHoor Al QasimiBouchra Khalili,
Doug Henderson,
Rika Noguchi.2011This SituationTino Sehgal2012What should I do to live in your life?Lee Kit, João Vasco Paiva2012Museum of Optography, The Purple ChamberDerek Ogbourne2012In Spite of it AllHoor Al QasimiRashid Masharawi, Marcel Odenbach, Melik Ohanian, Raeda Saadeh, Sharif Waked.2012Just Knocked Out: in collaboration with MoMaPeter EleeyLara Favaretto2013Chaos into Clarity: Re-Possessing a Funktioning UtopiaShannon Ayers HoldenXenobia Bailey, Hassan Hajjaj, Zak Ove.2013I Look To You And I See NothingOlivier Varenne and Nicole DurlingRyoji Ikeda, Anish Kapoor, Terence Koh, Teresa Margolles, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Lawrence Weiner, Gino de Dominicis, Shezad Dawood and Sophie Calle.2014/seconds.Peter LewisAbdullah Al Saadi, Shezad Dawood, Leo Fitzmaurice, Margaret Harrison, Taraneh Hemami, Mohammed Kazem, Peter Kennard, Hassan Sharif, Sergei Sviatchenko, Jalal Toufic.2018Rain RoomHannes Koch, Florian Ortkrass
See also Emirati Artists
References
External links
Official Website