Curated by Waheeda Baloch, the fourth Karachi Biennale titled ‘رزق | Risk — Food, Futures & Fair Practices’, foregrounds socio-economic and political complexities surrounding local and global food systems and traditional dietary customs, and their entanglement with human practices, culture, heritage, and social justice.

Karachi Biennale is the flagship project of Karachi Biennale Trust. With extensive academic and artistic programming, the last three editions have focused on people-driven movements in political times, ecological crises, and post-pandemic technological innovations.

KB24’s curator Waheeda Baloch is an art educator, curator, and artist, originally from Mirpurkhas (Sindh), a region with rich artistic heritage. She is Professor at the Institute of Art and Design, Sindh University and is pursuing a PhD at the University of Bonn with interests in art history and theory. She holds two master’s degrees: Curation from Stockholm University and Fine Art from Sindh University. Baloch is the Founding Curator of ArtFest Karachi, hosted at Sambara Art Gallery. Her portfolio includes numerous national and international exhibitions.

NS: How do you envision Rizq and Risk for KB24, curatorially?

WB: The concept of رزق  / Rizq is about divine sustenance of resources —  one of which is food. Food systems, however, are not without Risks, which range from global malpractices, land grabs, and colonialist agendas to technological agricultural production and loss of traditional customs. This edition of the biennale helps viewers understand such issues associated with global food systems, and opportunities within them, through extensive exhibitions and programming.

Several works highlight themes pertaining to parallel economies —  as opposed to a mainstream economy which disrupts craft and traditional living practices, and impacts communities. Showcased artists focus on land issues, biographies and the sacred roles of water bodies like rivers in sustaining communal livelihoods, and how disrupting these systems affect communities economically and emotionally.

NS: Why is rethinking about food systems important now?

WB: Food insecurity is a grave global concern. The effect of colonial practices on our land and traditions have also been egregious. Many South Asian countries have been subjected to the so-called Green Revolution since the 60s, advocating for a technologically modified enhanced agricultural production through “improved” khaad, seeds, pesticides, and machinery which is harmful for the soils. We lost traditional and much healthier ways of farming as a drastic consequence of genetic engineering.

Here’s an example of how colonial powers uproot traditional items from their local contexts, and rebrand them as ideal products, sold under pretentious marketing campaigns. In precolonial times, South Asian Muslim communities used miswak – the chewable stem of the plant Salvadora Persica — for dental hygiene. Colonial learning under the British considered these centuries old traditional methods as “uncultured” and instead, encouraged replacing traditional and natural products with synthetically produced “modern” toothpastes in Indian communities. Now, miswak is recognized as an excellent medium of tooth cleaning by companies originating in the West, that add artificial miswak flavors in their toothpastes, and present the product as groundbreaking research of their own.

At KB24, we wish to rethink cultural practices pertaining to organic farming, food production, equal access, social justice, and management. We are showcasing several artists from multiple continents taking on the roles of food activists and justice advocates wishing to safeguard their customs and lands from malpractices.

NS: The select Pakistani and international artists bring such an interesting mix of expertise across disciplines to this year’s edition. We have a fascinating lineup of polyglot artists who are also academics, filmmakers, social justice advocates, agriculturalists, and archivers. How did this come about?

WB: All races and genders were welcome to apply in our open call. The selection for this year’s edition is a result of very rigorous research and we invited those artists whose works resonate most truthfully with the thematic. Several works are freshly created for the biennale and some are continuation of series and projects. My curatorial apparition is also committed to providing visibility to lesser represented artists from Pakistan and around the globe.

NS: Do any of the artworks innovate in ways of making that support the environment?

WB: We have artists who are focused on notions of immateriality, human sentiments and affect, and social interactions. Several installations are sound bites and film. And some artists have chosen not to travel via air in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint.

NS: Are you using any strategies to involve audiences and have them interact with the artworks?

WB: Exhibiting artists welcome audience participation via technological intervention and even consumption of artwork edibles that are offered as innovative solutions to contemporary food problems. There are interactive websites and several multi-media installations, too.

NS: KB is for the public which comprises audiences from all spheres, interests, and backgrounds. Are there any anxieties about oversimplifying the content?

WB: The inaugural Karachi Biennale held in 2017 opened up essential conversations amongst our audiences which we observed in its programming, roundtable sessions, and public seminars. None of the themes or the works, especially in this edition, are jargon-loaded, very theoretical or abstract. These are real issues present in the fabric of our society, faced by all genders and socio-economic groups of various ages. As always, our audiences are keen, bright, and ready to interact with KB24’s unique programming.

The fourth iteration of Karachi Biennale will be open for public viewing from October 27, 2024 till November 10, 2024. Weekdays 10am to 6pm, and Friday to Sunday from 10am to 7pm. The venues include NED University (City Campus), Frere Hall, Alliance Française de Karachi, Sambara Art Gallery, and Bagh Ibne Qasim.

Title: Portrait of KB24 Curator, Waheeda Baloch, Berlin; photographer, unknown. All images, courtesy and copyright @Waheeda Baloch.