LB04

Open call for poets: Conference of the Stray Birds invites contributions from across Eurasia

Conference of the Stray Birds will present its inaugural collection of poems at Lahore Biennale 04: The Shape of Coexistence, taking place in spring 2027. The collection reflects on the legacies and possible afterlives of twentieth-century internationalism across Eurasia. Of particular importance to us are the internationalist writers’ conferences that took place across Soviet Central Eurasia in the post–World War II period. At these gatherings, writers and poets from different countries came together to share ... More

Programs

Lahore ki aik Dastan – لاھور کی ایک داستان

Memory - Legacy - Migration The Lahore Biennale Foundation (LBF) in collaboration with the British Council presented a three, day site specific art exhibition featuring work by artist Farida Batool and curated by Tanvir Hasan. This exhibition is situated in one of the city’s historic buildings—the Dyal Singh Mansions, on Mall Road — a building that has stood silently and watched the city and its people change. 

Public Outreach

artSPEAK | Borderlines: On Performative Practices

A discussion with Zoya Siddiqui and Farwa Hassan. At the first ever artSPEAK event, emerging artists Zoya Siddiqui and Farwa Hassan were invited to share their experience as the recipients of the Theertha Performance Platform Award, and to expand upon how their practice related to performance art. The talk took place at Gallery 39K on June 8, 2015. Zoya Siddiqui, a visual artist, is a recent Beaconhouse National University graduate based in Lahore. Farwa Hassan graduated from the Beaconhouse National University in 2014 and has showcased her works in Lahore and Islamabad. Zoya Siddiqui, a visual artist, is a recent Beaconhouse National University ... More

Publications

Hustle Culture

Stolon Press’s Hustle Culture is a record made of the daily life around three bird baths placed under a chaste tree and a tamarind tree, in a small garden, in a small town in Malaysia. The visitors to the baths vary—sunbirds, fantails, swallows, an occasional tailorbird, maybe even a kingfisher or oriole, a toad, as well the neighborhood’s fat cat. The baths are washed and refilled regularly, sometimes there are no visitors at all, save for a floating feather; the camera is too slow or too fast, too impatient, or badly positioned. Instead of a story or plot, there is rhythm, fluttering, ... More

Programs

Zero Waste Initiative

The Lahore Biennale Foundation (LBF) is committed to fostering sustainable practices through its Zero Waste Initiative, aimed at reducing the environmental footprint of our projects and daily operations. As part of this commitment, we have implemented a comprehensive waste management system that emphasizes recycling, repurposing, and responsible disposal methods.

Programs

ANCESTORS: Architecture of Memory

This public program curated by Natasha Ginwala was envisioned as a multi-part, interdisciplinary platform for the Gujral Foundation’s project My East is Your West, which in turn was part of the 56th Venice Biennale (2015) as a collateral event.

Public Outreach

artSPEAK | The Artist-in-Residence

Books n Beans - November 5, 2015 For the third artSPEAK, Saba Khan, Basir Mahmood and Dr. Razia Sadik ruminated upon the role of the artist-in-residence within the context of Pakistan and the future possibilities available therein.

Research

LBF Research Fellowship: Building A National Film Archive

Announced in Summer 2018, the Lahore Biennale Foundation Research Fellowship was open to any individual or collective interested in researching any aspect of modern or contemporary art and visual culture of Pakistan. Award selection was based on the clear identification of the research methodology and archives used, and the relevance of the topic in contributing new knowledge and insight. A public announcement of the award resulted in many submitted applications. The final selection was made by an independent jury. Artist Hira Nabi was the recipient. The total amount awarded for the 2018 cycle was Rs. 300,000. The distinguished mentor for this ... More

Publications

Urbanities – art and public space in Pakistan

Urbanities - art and public space in Pakistan is a critical exploration of the urban, its complexities and possibilities under the premise of individual artistic work and research approaches. Throughout 2016, the partner project between the Goethe- Institut Pakistan and the Lahore Biennale Foundation, in collaboration with Vasl Artists' Collective, Annemarie-Schimmel-Haus, Marvi Mazhar & Associates, and other partners, incited discursive and artistic contributions related to Pakistan's controversial and contested urban space.

Publications

Lahore Biennale Reader 02

Between Jan 26 and Feb 29, 2020, the Lahore Biennale 02 was exhibited at multiple sites across Lahore, Pakistan. Hoor Al Qasimi curated the work of over eighty artists and collectives under the theme of Between The Sun And The Moon, emphasizing participation from the Global South and with a stress on artists and works from Africa, Central Asia, West Asia and their diasporas. The multifaceted Biennale program included exhibited works, performances, participatory settings, publications ... More