Sharjah Biennial 7 workshops teach students value of critical awareness in contemporary art

A core part of Sharjah Biennial 7 is the "Education Programme", which includes Khan's Critical Awareness Workshops. Through the mediums of film, media and text, Khan will offer students two four-day courses to be held before and after the opening of the Biennial.

"It is extremely important to expose students to thinking critically about the frameworks that shape our understanding [of the world]. This workshop is not designed to teach, per se, but to evoke in the students a passion for exploration and critique, in a framework that contextualises contemporary and local art today", says workshop facilitator and artist, Hassan Khan.

"By exposing students, in the workshop, to different forms of works that are resistant to the systems of production allows students to understand two basic positions. Firstly, how do we create a subject, and secondly how to we then take a position on that subject", adds Khan.

The two four-day courses will be held either side of the Biennial and be split into morning and afternoon sessions. The morning sessions will take the format of a formal lecture with the afternoons spent in groups, in a workshop format. There, students will be able use the information gained in the lecture and apply their ideas for presentation at the end of the day.

For most of the students, the workshops gave them their first chance to see the dynamics of contemporary art and be a part of it.

"Previously, many of us saw "Fine Art" simply as painting. We soon realized that a message could be conducted through means other than traditional canvas and oil paints", said Mariam Al Ghurair, Student at The College of Fine Arts. "Installation works which started to appear in the previous biennial were a shock to the system for the local arts scene. However, we have now learned how to respect an artist's work and analyze the concepts", added Al Ghurair.

Students also praised the workshops as complimentary to their curriculum and highly stimulating. "Who knows, perhaps we might even be participants in the future biennials once we graduate and become professional artists", said Iman Assayyed, Student at The College of Fine Arts.

Hassan Khan has travelled extensively, citing that he has always been interested in working with students, around the world. As to his own work and experience, he has worked with image sound, text and concept-producing videos, installations, soundtracks and performances. He has also held seminars at the Art Academy in Umea, conducted critical studio visits at the Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam and the Dutch Art Institute in Enschelde.

Sharjah Biennial 7's organisers stress that the two-month event will offer a different experience in comparison with traditional arts venues or events, saying that the Biennial's appeal goes beyond the artist or traditionalist art-lovers but seeks to engage the wider community in socio-political and cultural expressions through artistic mediums. The workshops clearly seek to offer greater understanding and enjoyment of the works.

Sharjah Biennial 7 will be held from April 6 until June 6, across two venues; the Sharjah Art Museum and the Sharjah Expo Centre, and is free for all visitors.