About this reported the The Art Newspaper.
Curated by artist Moataz Nasr, the exhibition will be titled This Too Shall Pass. The exhibits will be accompanied by performances, musical events, and lectures.
The main program is expected to feature about 50 artists, as well as special exhibitions of young Egyptian artists in Alexandria museums.
“The Egyptian art scene has frozen like a lake without oxygen. We want to throw a stone into the water and make a ripple. The time for change has come,” says Nasr.
The biennale will use sites that reflect the city's history, including this Roman amphitheater. Photo: Alexandria Biennale
The Alexandria Biennale is the third oldest in the world, after Venice and São Paulo. It was founded in 1955 under the presidency of Gamal Abdel Nasser. It initially focused on artists from the Mediterranean countries, and Nasser plans to maintain this focus, while also inviting a few artists from other countries.
This time, the biennial is operating as a private-public partnership, and not only at public expense, as before. The state and local authorities provided start-up funds, and business promised support. The event is designed not only for artistic circles, but also for the general public of Alexandria.
Over the past 25 years, the city has lost many young professionals to Cairo, including Nasr himself. But Alexandria remains a cultural icon of the country. The exhibition sites will be chosen to highlight the city's history: the Roman Amphitheater, the Library of Alexandria, Qaytbay Fortress, and Fuad Street, one of the oldest streets in the world.
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