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Khalil Rabah

Khalil Rabah: What is not

Khalil Rabah: What is not

4 March - 4 July 2022
Sharjah Art Foundation
Galleries 1, 2 and 3, Al Mureijah Square
Location, contact

Curator: Hoor Al Qasimi

About Khalil Rabah


Khalil Rabah: What is not is an exhibition of significant works by Khalil Rabah, created from the 1990s to the present, that propose speculative frameworks and platforms for exploring how cultural institutions, curatorial practice, museological discourse and critical knowledge operate under long-standing states of emergency and displacement. The exhibition presents an overview of the artist’s ongoing projects, including the Palestinian Museum of Natural History and Humankind, the Riwaq Biennale and Collaborations: by in form, alongside his Scale models.

Focusing on the processes that art practices are subjected to within international institutions, his projects encourage debates about cultural organisations by questioning the social, cultural and political value attributed to artefacts. Emerging from his deep involvement and background in architecture, Rabah’s works seek to provide an alternative vision that challenges public perceptions. He draws on different methodologies to engage with themes of displacement, memory and identity to examine the relationship between humans and their surroundings as well as the nature of the global human condition.

Khalil Rabah: What is not is curated by Sharjah Art Foundation Director Hoor Al Qasimi.

About Khalil Rabah

Khalil Rabah is best known for rewriting and inventing history. Emerging from his deep involvement and background in architecture, his works aim to provide an alternative vision that challenges public perceptions and expectations. Rabah reflects and draws on different methodologies to engage with themes of displacement, memory and identity to examine the relationship between humans and their surroundings as well as the nature of global human suffering.

Solo exhibitions of his work have been presented at Sfeir-Semler Gallery, Beirut (2018); Casa Árabe, Madrid (2016); Kunsthaus Hamburg (2015); e-flux, New York (2013); Beirut Art Centre (2012); The London Office, Artist Studio (2007); Brunei Gallery, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (2007); and Khalil Sakakini Cultural Centre, Ramallah (2004), among others. His work has also been shown in international group exhibitions at Kunstverein Hamburg (2021); Centre Pompidou, Paris (2020); Lahore Biennale (2020); Jameel Arts Centre, Dubai (2019); Manifesta 12 Palermo (2018); Darat al Funun, Amman (2018); Sharjah Biennial 13 (2017); Marrakech Biennale 6 (2016); Cartagena Biennial, Colombia (2014); Kochi-Muziris Biennale (2014); Thessaloniki Biennial (2013); Mori Art Museum, Tokyo (2012); Sharjah Biennial 10 (2011); Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha (2010); Venice Biennale (2009); Liverpool Biennial (2008); Tate Modern, London (2007); British Museum, London (2006); 9th Istanbul Biennale (2004); XXIV Biennale de São Paolo (1998); Sydney Biennial (1998); and Gwangju Biennale (1995), among others.

Rabah’s works can be found in the collections of MACRO, Rome; British Museum, London; Guggenheim, Abu Dhabi; Mathaf, Doha; Kunsthaus Zurich; and Sharjah Art Foundation.

He is the artistic director of Riwaq Biennale, Ramallah, founder of the Palestinian Museum of Natural History and Humankind and co-founder of Al Ma’mal Foundation for Contemporary Art, Jerusalem. He has also served on the advisory board of the Delfina Foundation, London, and the curricular committee of Ashkal Alwan Home Workspace Programme, Beirut.

Born in 1961 in Jerusalem, Rabah lives and works in Ramallah.


Location, contact:

Al Mureijah Art Spaces
Galleries 1, 2 and 3
Al Mureijah Square
Close to the intersection between Al Mureijah Street and Corniche Street
Location on map

Opening hours, access:
Sat - Thu 9:00 am - 9:00 pm
Fri 4:00 pm - 9:00 pm
All SAF exhibitions are free and open to the public.

Health and safety guidelines

Sharjah Art Foundation
Website | Email

Media contact:
Alyazeyah Al Marri
Email | +971-6-544-4113, ext. 25

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About Sharjah Art Foundation


From SAF website information.
© Cover image: Khalil Rabah: Courtesy of Sharjah Art Foundation.


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