Sharjah Art Foundation Announces Winners of Sharjah Biennial 15 Prize

Overview

Sharjah Art Foundation announced the recipients of the Sharjah Biennial 15 Prize on 7 February at the opening night gala dinner and awards ceremony of Sharjah Biennial 15: Thinking Historically in the Present in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Federal Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and Sheikha Hoor bint Sultan Al Qasimi, President and Director of Sharjah Art Foundation.

The recipients of this year’s prize are Bouchra Khalili for The Circle (2023), Doris Salcedo for Uprooted (2020–2022), and Hajra Waheed for Hum II (2023). Honourable mentions were awarded to Lee Kai Chung, Tania El Khoury, Gabriela Golder, Amar Kanwar, Joiri Minaya, Varunika Saraf and Ibrahim Mahama.

The Sharjah Biennial 15 Prize jury comprised of Elvira Dyangani Ose (Director of Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona), Solange Farkas (Curator and Director of Videobrasil Cultural Association) and Salwa Mikdadi (Professor of Art History and Director of the Arab Center for the Study of Art, NYU Abu Dhabi). The winners were selected from the more than 150 artists and collectives being exhibited at 19 venues across the emirate of Sharjah.

Conceived by the late Okwui Enwezor and curated by Hoor Al Qasimi, Director of Sharjah Art Foundation, Sharjah Biennial 15: Thinking Historically in the Present reflects on Enwezor’s visionary work, which transformed contemporary art and established an ambitious intellectual project that has influenced the evolution of institutions and biennials around the world.

The Sharjah Biennial Prize was established by Sharjah Biennial in 1993 and is now awarded by Sharjah Art Foundation. The honoured recipients are selected by a distinguished jury appointed by the foundation. The Sharjah Biennial Prize is given upon the jury’s discretion and can be granted to any number of artists.

Sharjah Biennial 15 Prize winning works were supported by the following Cultural Partners:
Bouchra Khalili, The Circle, 2023, co-commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation; MACBA, Barcelona; and Luma Foundation, Zurich.

Doris Salcedo, Uprooted, 2020–2022, commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation, with the generous support of Glenstone Museum, Potomac, Maryland.

Hajra Waheed, Hum II, 2023, commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation and supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, Ottawa.

Gabriela Golder, Ojos rotos/ Broken Eyes, 2023, produced by Han Nefkens Foundation, Barcelona.