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

My East is Your West (The Viewing, The Viewer and The Viewed)

My East is Your West* was an official collateral event of the 56th International Art Exhibition – Venice Biennale, which united for the first time the historically conflicting nations of India and Pakistan in a collaborative exhibition by artists from both countries, namely Shilpa Gupta (Mumbai) and Rashid Rana (Lahore). My East is Your West was conceived by Feroz Gujral, Director and Founder of the Gujral Foundation. One of the components of My East is Your West was an installation by Rashid Rana, entitled Shuhuud-o-shaahid-o-mashhuud (The Viewing, The Viewer and The Viewed). This work was a collaborative effort between Rashid Rana and the Lahore Biennale ... More

Public Outreach

Community Meetings

The objective of these meetings is to engage the art community, or public communities, in a conversation that enables them and the Lahore Biennale Foundation (LBF) to critically reflect upon their practices and related concerns. The LBF is cognizant of the fact that it cannot function in a vacuum and relies on the community to ascertain areas of need, so it may deliver accordingly in the most effective manner possible. Opportunities for such discussions are few and far apart in the artistic spaces at present; to counter that, the focus is on encouraging their frequency and enabling productive dialogue.

Research

LBF – AAN Research Grant – 2018

Announced in Summer 2018, the LBF – Research Grant was intended for an individual or collective whose research focuses on movements and shifts in modern and contemporary art practice in Pakistan or its diaspora. Therefore, this call invited research proposals that address arts that arise from or are significant to Pakistan.

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Publications

Stories We Tell – Aao Sunayein Kahani

Stories We Tell 'Aao Sunayein Kahani' is an audio/visual storytelling project of The School of Visual Art and Design (SVAD) at Beaconhouse National University and the Lahore Biennale Foundation (LBF) made possible with the support of the Centre for Culture and Development (CKU). The art of conversation and storytelling has played a pivotal role in suturing together the cultural fabric of South Asia. Since time immemorial this was how histories were transferred between generations; survival narratives were created and exchanged; and instructional anecdotes to sustain everyday life were passed down.

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

Dekho Lahore

Launched in 2015, the web-based collaboration between the Lahore Biennale Foundation and the public, #DekhoLahore, was planned as a visual investigation of LBF’s home base. Creative individuals were encouraged to photograph the city’s many facets on a weekly basis, and the selected images were shared on our social media outlets regularly.

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

We Walk Lahore

Artistic research and publication by Honi Ryan. This artistic research manifested in four main strands, which are represented in this publication in four chapters. Chronologically the first two chapters would be reversed, as Subjective Geographies was the initial research phase, followed by Walking Presence and Footpath Feasibility. The project culminated at the symposium on Urbanities - art and public space in Pakistan at Alhamra Arts Council in December 2016.

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