In a sign of the growing international interest in Bahraini art nurtured by the successful Art Bahrain Across Borders (ArtBAB) interaction, the works of seven Bahraini artists will be in the spotlight at the Venice Biennale, Italy, this month.

 

The show titled ‘The Wait’ will run from May 7 to 12 and feature around 20 works of artists Hasan Hujairi, Ghada Khunji, ‘Bahraini Danish’, a Bahraini-Danish art cooperative, Mariam Al Noaimi, Nasser Al Yousif and Hala Kaiksow.

  

The exhibition has been directed by Kaneka Subberwal, the founder of Art Select and Fairs and program director of ArtBAB. 

 

Kaneka said: “2019 has been particularly rewarding for our efforts to take the beauty of Bahraini contemporary art to the world and we are delighted to be participating in La Biennale di Venezia. The Venice Biennale has been, for over 120 years, one of the most prestigious cultural institutions in the world. Established in 1895, the Biennale has an attendance today of over 500,000 visitors at the art exhibition. The Bahraini artists shall be exhibiting in the historic Arsenale, an art complex that was formerly a centre for Venetian economic power, dating back to 1150.”

 

This is the first time that Art Select will be exhibiting in Venice. The announcement makes it the second major international show to link up with Bahraini artists through ArtBAB – Kaneka Subberwal has already announced participation in the Paris Biennale in September this year. 

 

Shaikha Maram bint Isa Al Khalifa, director of the Office of Her Royal Highness, Princess Sabeekha bint Ebrahim Al Khalifa, Wife of the King of Bahrain, who is the Patron of ArtBAB, said: “We are delighted that ArtBAB has built recognition for Bahraini contemporary artists and opened new avenues of engagement for them around the world. We are humbled and honoured that we have started new global conversations about art and culture, about contemporary Bahraini art and the Kingdom’s crafts heritage as well and are looking forward to positively influencing the narrative about Bahrain in the global conversation.” –TradeArabia News Service