Sharjah Art Foundation

Sharjah Biennial 16

Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
6 Febuary — 15 June 2025

Overview

Focal Point is an annual art book fair showcasing independent bookmaking from the region and around the world. Audiences will find a compelling selection of printed material by artists’ presses, bookmakers, self-publishers and non-commercial cultural producers on offer. Committed to expanding and experimenting with the medium of publishing, the fair includes talks, book launches, artists’ signings, workshops, music and artist-made products.

An initiative of Sharjah Art Foundation, Focal Point places a special focus on UAE-based publishers and functions as a critical space for knowledge sharing and community building.

International

This section brings together art and independent publishers from around the world to showcase and distribute their books in our community.

Atelier HOKO (Singapore), Bakwa Books (Yaoundé), Bananafish Books (Shanghai), Cairo Art Book Fair (Cairo), Central Tunis (Tunis), Further Reading Press (Jakarta), Gato Negro Ediciones (Mexico City), ist publishing (Kyiv), Kawkab ElRasameen (Cairo), Arctic Art Book Fair / Mondo Books (Tromsø), Offset Projects India (New Delhi), Prameya Art Foundation (New Delhi), RAW Materials Company (Dakar), Rab-Rab Press (Helsinki), Rawdah Print (Jeddah), Reliable Copy (Bangalore), Tanger Print Club (Tangiers), Tara Books (Chennai), The Mosaic Rooms Bookshop (London), mediabus - book society (Seoul), The 9th Art (Cairo), Water with Water (Doha)

Edit

This section presents a curated selection of art journals, magazines, artist books, comics and special interest books not distributed by local retailers and bookstores.

Al Nahda Al Arabia Library (Baghdad), Arts of the Working Class (Berlin), Backbone Books (Berlin), Book Works (London), Cafè Royal books (Southport, UK), Darat Al Funun (Amman), dpr-barcelona (Barcelona), Editions Jojo (Mumbai), Errant Bodies Press (Berlin), Fanzeen Comics (Amman), Half Letter Press / Temporary Service (Chicago), Happy Potato Press (Berlin), Hangar Artistic Research (Lisbon), Idea Books (Amsterdam), Iwalewa Books (Lagos), Kaph Books (Beirut), Kayfa-Ta (Amman/Cairo), Khalid Komics (Amman), Kulte Editions (Rabat), Kyklada Press (Athens), MIT Press, Maamoul Press (Michigan), Misk Art Institute / Rizzoli: The Art Library (Riyadh), Mizna (Saint Pauls, Minnesota), Moleskin Foundation (Milan), Moniker Press (Vancouver), Mousse Publishing (Milan), Observatoire Atelier (Casablanca), Shortt Editions (Florida), SSAF (Sher-Gil Sundaram Arts Foundation) / Tulika Books (New Delhi), The Funambulist (Paris), Ugly Duckling Presse (New York), Well Gedacht Publishing (Berlin / Vienna), Zaman books & Curating (Paris)

Local

This section consists of books made by the local arts community—cultural institutions, galleries, publishers and non-profit government cultural entities—as well as printed matter, illustrations, zines, comics, photography, stationery and screen printing produced by independent artists.

Cultural Institutions
Art Jameel, Hobb, Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council, Sharjah Architecture Triennial, The Africa Institute

Art Publishers
Sharjah Art Foundation, Al Qasimi Publications, Barjeel Art Foundation, Carbon 12, Department of Culture Sharjah, Emirates Fine Arts Society, Gulf Photo Plus, Kalimat Foundation, Kalimat Group, Lawrie Shabibi, Maraya Art Centre – 1971 Design Space, NYUAD Art Gallery, Sharjah Museums, Tashkeel, The Third Line, Warehouse421

Artists
Abdulla AlNeyadi, Alia Al Hammadi, Ameena Alnuaimi, Amna Al Saleh, Bayan Samman, catsdraws, Dima Abou Zannad, Dima Bittard, Eezee Doodles, Eman AlRaeesi, Esraa R. Store, Fatma AlZarooni, Hari, Hessa Almarzooqi, Hessa Alzarooni, Hrag Kazanjian, Jehan Ali, Kamal - AnalogTheRoom, Khalid Mezaina, Lubna Aziz, Maha Moustafa, Maitha Al Omaira, Mariam Mohamed, Mohammed Alhussaini, Morvarid Daryayi, Nahla Tabbaa, Nasir Nasrallah, Nora Zeid, Qamise, Rasamett, Sana Haroon, Sara AlKhayyal, Shadah.ae, Shoug AlHelo, Thalath x Mouza Al Hamrani, Yesmin Choutri

  • Friday, 25 November

    4:00 pm–6:00 pm
    The Flying Saucer
    Meetup and book launch (Arabic)

    Sci-fi enthusiasts, writers and artists are invited to gather for a discussion of the sci-fi genre in a casual setting. They will also explore the new book The Flying Saucer with its authors.

    5:00 pm–7:00 pm
    Basics of Illustrating
    Workshop (Arabic and English)

    Young people between the ages of 11 and 16 will enjoy this workshop with graphic designer and children’s book illustrator Wafa Ibrahim, who will explain the fundamentals of illustrative art and share her projects and experiences.

    5:00 pm–7:00 pm
    Visual Diary
    Workshop (Arabic and English)

    Children aged 6 to 10 will make a personal planner using recycled paper, bookbinding techniques and drawings.

    6:00 pm–8:00 pm
    Sketch Artist Meetup and Launch of Corniche 4
    Meetup and book launch (Arabic and English)

    In this meetup, sketch artists, both hobbyists and professionals, are invited to share, critique and discover each other’s work and build a network of peers in Sharjah. The discussion will be followed by the launch of the fourth edition of Corniche, an annual publication bringing together artists and illustrators from Sharjah and the wider region who specialise in comics.

    7:00 pm–10:00 pm
    Hosny & Friends
    Musical performance

    Sharing his Nubian heritage, Alexandria-born oud player Hosny will jam live with his bandmates.

  • Saturday, 26 November

    4:00 pm–4:10 pm
    Introduction to Sharjah Art Foundation’s annual Publishing Grant
    Presentation (Arabic and English)

    Winning publications and research projects from the Foundation’s 2021 Publishing Grant will be presented, and winners of the 2022 open call will be announced.

    4:10 pm–4:30 pm
    State of Cinema
    Artist talk (Arabic)

    Translator and author Bakhita Al Ameri will discuss her translation project State of Cinema, a compilation of manifestos from filmmakers and theorists.

    4:30 pm–4:50 pm
    Landwalks: Across Palestine and South Africa
    Artist talk (English)

    Tomà Berlanda and Meghan Ho-Tong will present their publication Landwalks: Across Palestine and South Africa, which explores embodied ways of knowing land and reclamation of collective landscape through artistic practices and research.

    4:50 pm–5:10 pm
    (Fine) Arts Dissertations Series
    Artist talk (English)

    In this presentation, Bangalore-based publishers Reliable Copy (Nihaal Faizel and Sarasija Subramanian) present facsimiles of artist books made by Pushpamala N. and Praneet Soi as part of their master’s study at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda.

    5:10 pm–5:30 pm
    How to Not Build a Nation
    Artist talk (English)

    The Forest Curriculum (Abhijan Toto) and Yonaz Kristy present an eight-part experimental and research-oriented zine publication from artists and collaborators across south and southeast Asia on the ways in which nation states reproduce colonial and pre-colonial violences.

    5:30 pm–6:45 pm
    Khalil Rabah: Falling Forward / Works (1995–2025)
    Artist talk with Q&A (English)

    In this talk, artist Khalil Rabah and Ahmad Makia will explore the process of making Rabah’s first major monograph, Falling Forward / Works (1995–2025), which presents a comprehensive selection of his twenty-five-year practice and exhibition materials.

    6:00 pm–7:00 pm
    Aisha’s Pearl
    Reading (English)

    Storyteller and illustrator Maitha Al Khayyat will conduct a reading of the beautifully illustrated children’s book Aisha’s Pearl, written by Julia Johnson.

    7:00 pm–onwards
    Community Book Launches
    Book signings and networking

    Browse the art book fair, and get signed copies of Sharjah Art Foundation’s most recent releases as well as new books from Focal Point participants and publishers.

    7:00 pm–10:00 pm
    Sways N Edges
    Musical performance

    The Sways N Edges trio will explore funk and soul through popular covers and original jams.

  • Sunday, 27 November

    5:00 pm–6:00 pm
    Book Haul
    Meetup (Arabic and English)

    Bring your favourite books from your Focal Point purchases, and share them with fellow art book enthusiasts in an engaging session of feedback, discussion and discovery.

    6:00 pm–7:00 pm
    Majd’s Box
    Reading (Arabic)

    Children and young adults of all ages are welcome to join Omar Al Obedli for a reading of Majd’s Box, co-authored by Kifah Bu Ali and Toqa Al Hamrany.

    7:00 pm–10:00 pm
    Adiga
    Musical performance

    Formed in 2016, Dubai-based Sudanese group Adiga brings traditional rustic sounds from Sudan to the present. Blending nostalgia with the current musical soundscape, the trio adds a modern experimental twist to the classic Sudanese tone.