SHARJAH ART FOUNDATION
Announces Winners of Sharjah Biennial 10 Prize:
Trisha Donnelly, Imran Qureshi, Rania Stephan, Rayyane Tabet, and Jalal Toufic
16 March–16 May 2011
The Sharjah Art Foundation announces recipients of the 2011 Sharjah Biennial Prize as the 10th edition of the Sharjah Biennial, Plot for a Biennial, continues with eight weeks of cutting-edge exhibitions, film, performance, music and publications, March 16–May 16, 2011. Honorees of this year’s award totaling 30,000 USD include Trisha Donnelly, Imran Qureshi, Rania Stephan, Rayyane Tabet, and Jalal Toufic as selected by a jury of distinguished members. The 2011 selection committee included Director of MoMA PS1 Klaus Biesenbach, Director of Lebanon’s Ashkal Alwan, Christine Tohme, and art critic, media theorist, and Andrew Mellon Professor at the Courtauld Art Institute in London Boris Groys. The awards were presented over a celebratory gala dinner hosted by H.H. Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the UAE Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah on Wednesday, March 16. The 2011 Sharjah Biennial is curated by Suzanne Cotter (Curator, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi Project) and Rasha Salti (Creative Director ArteEast), in association with Haig Aivazian (Chicago-based independent curator, artist and writer).For a site-specific work conversing with the culture, history, and political realities of the region, the Sharjah Biennial Prize was awarded to Imran Qureshi for Blessings Upon the Land of my Love (2011), a powerful site-specific installation in the courtyard of Bait Al Serkal. The second primary prize was awarded to filmmaker Rania Stephan for the subjective and compassionate reading of one of the leading figures of Egyptian cinema, Souad Husni. The evening’s final primary prize was awarded to Trisha Donnelly for her new work. Additional prizes were awarded to artists Jalal Toufic and Rayanne Tabet. Jalal Toufic received special mention as “a philosopher, artist, and thinker” of note, while Rayyane Tabet received special mention as best “Emerging Artist,” for his 3-part installation Home on Neutral Ground (2011).
The Sharjah Biennial Prize was established by the Sharjah Biennial in 1993 and is now awarded by the Sharjah Art Foundation. The honored recipients are selected by a jury of distinguished members appointed by the Foundation. The Sharjah Biennial Prize is given in amounts totaling 30,000 USD upon the jury’s sole discretion and can be granted to any number of artists.
For bios and more information on the recipients of the 2011 Sharjah Biennial Prize, please visit www.sharjahart.org.
Preceding the announcement of this year’s Sharjah Biennial Prize, Plot for a Biennial commenced with a public ceremony in the presence of H.H. Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the UAE Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and H.E. Sheikha Hoor Al Qasimi, President of the Sharjah Art Foundation, along with Sharjah Art Foundation Director Jack Persekian and Sharjah Biennial 10 Curators. Cultural leaders, curators, art professionals, artists, members of the media, and visitors gathered from across the globe for the official inauguration of the Biennial’s 10th edition. Visitors enjoyed the Biennial’s offerings of visual art from exhibitions in the Sharjah Art Museum to site-specific installations in Sharjah’s Arts and Heritage Areas. Attendees also experienced a range of highlights across the disciplines from screenings of the Biennial’s Cinema Program, to a live performance of a new commission by acclaimed Lebanese choreographer Omar Rajeh performed by Maqamat Dance Theatre. From live music performances of Score for a Biennial, to extensive exhibitions of visual art, the Sharjah Biennial continues with exciting presentations of new work.
About the Sharjah Art Foundation
Sharjah Art Foundation supports the flourishing arts environment in the Gulf by nurturing artistic opportunities and actively pursuing both a regional and international program of cultural collaboration and exchange.
Sharjah Art Foundation builds on the pioneering role the Emirate of Sharjah has played in the artistic and cultural development of the Gulf region. Inspired by the cross-fertilisation and rich cultural diversity of the Emirates, the Foundation provides both national and international leadership in the production and presentation of contemporary visual arts. Recognising the central and distinctive contribution that art makes to society, the Sharjah Art Foundation cultivates a spirit of research, experimentation and excellence while acting as a catalyst for collaboration and exchange within the Middle East and beyond.
For more information on the Sharjah Art Foundation and the Sharjah Biennial, please visit www.sharjahart.org.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
FITZ & CO, New York
Justin Conner / Concetta Duncan
Tel: +1-212-627-1455, x232
E: justin@fitzandco.com / concetta@fitzandco.com
Sharjah Art Foundation
Farah Atoui
Tel: +971 6 568 5050
E: farahatoui@sharjahart.org
Image above:
Sharjah Biennial 10 gala dinner.
Photo by Gerardo Martinez / Courtesy Sharjah Art Foundation.
