The 35th Sao Paulo Biennial has unveiled the list of artists tasked with making the impossible possible – and creators from the Middle East and North Africa are at the forefront.
Titled Choreographies of the Impossible, it aims to explore ideas of unfeasible challenges through various experiences. Its curators say the diversity of voices, mediums and geographies inherent to an international biennial create the ideal platform to do so.
It is organised by curator Diane Lima, artist Grada Kilomba, anthropologist Helio Menezes and Reina Sofia Museum director Manuel Borja-Villel, who view their curation as a collective endeavour, rather than singling out their choices and approaches.
“We inhabit a world seemingly rife with what appears to be 'impossibilities': justice, environmental sustainability, overthrowing western hegemony, decolonisation, gender equality and the reshaping of political systems,” Lima tells The National. “Despite this, we find ourselves at a juncture where addressing these issues has become imperative, leading us to view 'the impossible' as an invitation to engage with artistic practices.”
Among the 121 artists and collectives taking part in the event, which runs from September 6 to December 10 at Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion, are Moroccans Bouchra Ouizguen, Yto Barrada, Nadir Bouhmouch, Soumeya Ait Ahmed and M'barek Bouhchichi; Lebanese artist Mounira Al Solh; Kamal Aljafari from Palestine; and Anna Boghiguian from Egypt. Casablanca-born Omar Berrada also joins the biennial’s curatorial council.
Kilomba says they seek to address a “collective interest" in the rhythms, tools, strategies and technologies, as well as in all "symbolic, economic and juridical procedures that extra-disciplinary knowledge are able to promote".
On the other hand, Menezes underlines the issues with the ways in which today’s socio-political climate puts people into boxes, adding: “We aim to extend our lens beyond individual nationalities, acknowledging that the idea of nationality itself can be a result of colonial and outdated categorisations.”
The selection of the artists from the Arab world reflects this philosophy. Borja-Villel explains: “All participants have an artistic production that revolves around impossibility or is created within impossible contexts, which is our main guiding thread.
“However, we must mention that our in-depth exploration and refined perspective on the artistic moment that Arab nations are going through were conducted through discussions and with the crucial exchange with Berrada.”
Aljafari’s video installation edits together footage from the Palestinian Research Centre in Beirut, which was looted by the Israeli army in 1982, with added visual effects.
Boghiguian, meanwhile, assumes the power of storytelling through drawing, cutouts, collages and text. She takes cues from western symbolist paintings to trace the story of enslaved West African people who were sent to America to work on cotton plantations.
In Ouizguen’s performative work, a diverse group of women will present a new choreography inspired by Arabic poetry, Marrakesh markets and the powerful impact of movement.
From Brazilian fixtures like Sonia Gomes, Luiz de Abreu, Raquel Lima and Luana Vitra to international names such as Simone Leigh, Stanley Brouwn, Senga Nengudi and Wifredo Lam, the list reflects the curators’ “decentralising” view to organising a grand level international tour de force.
The approach has started with a few initial collective steps. The curators have avoided using a designated chief curator and offered the participants what Lima calls “complete liberty to interact with the theme and address the pressing issues the biennial confronts in their unique and fluid manner".
Tackling the notion of impossibility gave the organisers an opportunity “to radically envision what appears as impossible", adds Kilomba. The show’s geographically diverse roster, she believes, is a way to address the "immeasurable, indescribable and unimaginable outcomes" of the fight against oppression.
Menezes adds: “We believe that we have reached a convergence of these impossibilities: injustice, the climate crisis, human rights violations and the dominance of categories and definitions that no longer suffice to describe the world around us. Hence, 'impossibility' surfaced as the crucial concept we needed to reflect on and dance with.”
This flirting with the impossible, for Borja-Villel, comes out “less as a desire for control but rather a chance to collectively challenge and upend our current way of living and build a better future".
The curatorial theme’s collective nature also spills into the exhibition experience. The Sao Paulo-based design company Vao will reinterpret Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion with an exhibition design that “radically reimagines the methods of exhibiting and organising", says Kilomba.
The Oscar Niemeyer-designed Modernist building has been home to the biennial since 1957. It was the biennial's fourth edition and the first to be held in the three-story 30,000 square metre venue in Parque Ibirapuera.
The company, which is spearheaded by Anna Juni, Enk te Winkel and Gustavo Delonero, will transform the ramp-accentuated pavilion not only to host physical artworks but also to encompass film, music and dance.
Choreographies of the Impossible runs from September 6 to December 10, Parque Ibirapuera, Sao Paulo
Match info
Athletic Bilbao 0
Real Madrid 1 (Ramos 73' pen)
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Gully Boy
Director: Zoya Akhtar
Producer: Excel Entertainment & Tiger Baby
Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Kalki Koechlin, Siddhant Chaturvedi
Rating: 4/5 stars
'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra
Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa
Rating: 4/5
The Intruder
Director: Deon Taylor
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Michael Ealy, Meagan Good
One star
PROFILE
Name: Enhance Fitness
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 200
Amount raised: $3m
Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors
TOURNAMENT INFO
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Friday, Oct 5
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers
Saturday, Oct 6
4pm: Nangarhar Leopards v Kandahar Knights
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Balkh Legends
Tickets
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The tournament will be broadcast live in the UAE on OSN Sports.
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Thursday:
Hatta v Al Jazira, 4.55pm
Al Wasl v Dibba, 7.45pm
Friday:
Al Dhafra v Al Nasr, 5.05pm
Shabab Al Ahli Dubai v Al Wahda, 7.45pm
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Ajman v Emirates, 4.55pm
Al Ain v Sharjah, 7.45pm
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20EduPloyment%3Cbr%3EDate%20started%3A%20March%202020%3Cbr%3ECo-Founders%3A%20Mazen%20Omair%20and%20Rana%20Batterjee%3Cbr%3EBase%3A%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Recruitment%3Cbr%3ESize%3A%2030%20employees%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20Pre-Seed%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Angel%20investors%20(investment%20amount%20undisclosed)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
England's all-time record goalscorers:
Wayne Rooney 53
Bobby Charlton 49
Gary Lineker 48
Jimmy Greaves 44
Michael Owen 40
Tom Finney 30
Nat Lofthouse 30
Alan Shearer 30
Viv Woodward 29
Frank Lampard 29
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
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Price: From Dh117,059
If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
The tours: The Tour for Muggles usually runs several times a day, lasts about two-and-a-half hours and costs £14 (Dh67)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on now at the Palace Theatre. Tickets need booking significantly in advance
Entrance to the Harry Potter exhibition at the House of MinaLima is free
The hotel: The grand, 1909-built Strand Palace Hotel is in a handy location near the Theatre District and several of the key Harry Potter filming and inspiration sites. The family rooms are spacious, with sofa beds that can accommodate children, and wooden shutters that keep out the light at night. Rooms cost from £170 (Dh808).
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Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
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THE BIO
Family: I have three siblings, one older brother (age 25) and two younger sisters, 20 and 13
Favourite book: Asking for my favourite book has to be one of the hardest questions. However a current favourite would be Sidewalk by Mitchell Duneier
Favourite place to travel to: Any walkable city. I also love nature and wildlife
What do you love eating or cooking: I’m constantly in the kitchen. Ever since I changed the way I eat I enjoy choosing and creating what goes into my body. However, nothing can top home cooked food from my parents.
Favorite place to go in the UAE: A quiet beach.
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
WORLD CUP SEMI-FINALS
England v New Zealand
(Saturday, 12pm UAE)
Wales v South Africa
(Sunday, 12pm, UAE)
