Hoor Al Qasimi Appointed Curator of Lahore Biennale 2020

Hoor Al Qasimi, president and founding director of Sharjah Art Foundation, has been appointed curator of the second Lahore Biennale, scheduled to open in early 2020 across multiple sites in Lahore. Under her supervision, the Biennale will extend its regional scope from South Asia to also include West Asia and the Middle East, and will feature new commissions, large-scale installations and discursive programs.

Al Qasimi earned her BFA from the Slade School of Fine Art, London, in 2002, and MA in curating contemporary art from the Royal College of Art, London, in 2008. In 2009, she launched the Sharjah Art Foundation, which presents diverse exhibitions and cultural programs to promote contemporary art in Sharjah. She has been curating the Sharjah Biennial since 2003 and currently serves on the board of directors for MoMA PS1, New York; KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin and Ashkal Alwan, Beirut. In 2017, she was elected president of the International Biennial Association.

“In addition to her deep knowledge and extensive curatorial experience, Al Qasimi brings a very special energy to her projects. As the founder and driving force behind the Sharjah Art Foundation and the Sharjah Biennial, Al Qasimi has explored and demonstrated the power of art to transform narratives and transcend borders,” stated Osman Khalid Waheed, chairman of the board of the Lahore Biennale Foundation.

Al Qasimi expressed her excitement regarding her appointment: “I look forward to working closely with the Foundation to curate a program that celebrates the richness of artistic practice in South Asia and the importance of strengthening cultural ties between this region, the Middle East and the broader international arts landscape.”

Dennis Mao is an editorial intern of ArtAsiaPacific.

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