Bahrain Art and Craftsmanship focus in La Biennale Paris

Manama: July 30 (BNA): Over forty works of contemporary Bahraini art by 21 selected artists and eleven beautifully curated wood collectible pieces of The Bahrain Room project will be showcased this September at La Biennale Paris, one of the most prestigious art shows in the world. The Kingdom is the ‘invited country’ at the 60-year old art festival, which takes place from September 13 to 17 this year. The 364 square-metreArtBAB Pavilion will be the largest at the show. It will also be the first time that traditional Bahraini artisans are part of the Kingdom’s art delegation at an international show of this stature. The Bahrain Room exhibits shall include 2 wall art installations and furniture collectible pieces highlighting the traditional handicraft techniques of Bahrain. “The international dimension of the Biennale Paris has been further underscored through the confirmation of the first guest of honour: the Kingdom of Bahrain,” said Mathias Ary Jan, President of the Syndicat National des Antiquaires, which organizes the biennale, “In a pavilion designed by Nathalie Crinière, the focus will be on Bahrain's culture and the engaging cultural vision of this Gulf country. We are confident that this robust presence along with the excellence of contemporary Bahraini art will attract collectors from the region and also other parts of the world.” The exhibition shall be curated by noted art critic, exhibition curator and editor, Pascale Le Thoreland artist and curator Amal Khalaf, both influential and knowledgeable in the global art world. “The showcase of Bahraini contemporary art and the cultural narrative of the Kingdom’s handicrafts in La Biennale Paris represents a major accomplishment for our artists who have established their footprint across Borders,” said the founder of Art Select&ArtBAB, Kaneka Subberwal, under whose direction the Biennale project has come to fruition. “This is also a double celebration, as, for the first time, nine of Bahrain’s traditional artisans too will be part of the exhibitors, taking the narrative of the Kingdom’s rich legacy & heritage to an audience of art connoisseurs.” This will be the second time that Art Select is taking Bahraini artists to Paris, having organized a hugely successful Bahrain Art Week in Paris at exactly the same time last year. Kaneka added, “La Biennale Paris will provide valuable exposure of Bahraini craft skills and their contemporary revival – we shall have intricate copper nail art, Bani Jamra weaving, gypsum panel work, woodcraft and ceramic art from The Bahrain Room project on display.” Twenty-one contemporary Bahraini artists have been selected to exhibit their works in the prestigious Biennale. They are Abdulla Buhijji, Abdul Rahim Sharif, Ahmed Anan, Aysha Al Moayyed, Hamed Al Bosta, HalaKaiksow, Somaya Abdulghani, Jaafar Al Haddad, Balqees Fakhro, Ghada Khunji, Hesham Sharif, Ishaq Madan, Jamal Abdulrahim, Khalid Al Jabri, Lulwa Al Khalifa, Maryam Al Amin, Maryam Al Noaimi, Marwa Al Khalifa, Nabeela Al Khayer, Noof Alrefaei and Omar Al Rashed. The nine craftspeople who shall represents the successful Artisans Across Borders programme are Beni Jamra weaver Abdulhusain Yusuf Mohamed Hasan, four experts in wood carving, A. Wahab Taqi, Ali Mohammed, Najeeb HerzRashedAlshomali and Alawi Furnitures, ceramics artisan Ghada AlKhuzaei, Metal engraving artisan Noora Fraidoon, gypsum artist Jaffar A.Hussain Yaqoob Yousif and copper nail work artist Abdul-Rasool Kadhem Ahmed.