Sharjah Biennial 12: The past, the present, the possible invites over fifty artists and cultural practitioners from over twenty five countries to introduce their ideas of the possible through their art and work .

Curated by Eungie Joo with associate curator Ryan Inouye, SB12 includes works by more than fifty artists and cultural practitioners from twenty-five countries, with over two thirds of the participants presenting new work and commissions. SB12 takes place in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, crossing the emirate to sites in and around the city, as well as in the city of Kalba on the Gulf of Omanز

Rather than conforming to proscribed themes, works in SB12 are presented in conversation with each other. Challenging modes of participation and engagement, The past the present, the possible invites participants and the public to reflect upon the possibilities and ambitions of Sharjah, a city and emirate still in the process of imagining itself through education, culture, religion, heritage and science. SB12 acknowledges the centrality of the present—respecting the past, but rejecting nostalgia and the burden of history in favour of productive imaginings of the possible. These perspectives resonate with the ideas of philosopher Henri Lefebvre in his essay The Right to the City (1967), which inspired the exhibition’s title.