The Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation has announced plans to launch a new biennial in Uzbekistan, set to open on 5 September 2025.
The first edition of the Bukhara Biennial is set to be one of the largest contemporary art events in Central Asia, with an initiative to transform and engage with the art and cultural heritage of Uzbekistan. The artists and artisans will showcase work across various disciplines, including art, textiles, music, dance, craft, architecture and culinary arts.
The event will take place in the renewed historic district of Bukhara, a UNESCO Creative City of Crafts and Folk Art. Playing on the location’s rich and diverse history, the biennial will focus on the exchange of culture, economy and knowledge and the Silk Road as a hub meeting point between Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Several locations of the district will host the biennial including Fayzulla Khodjaev House-Museum, Miri-Arab Madrasah, Magoki Attori Mosque, Kalyan Minaret and the Olimjon Caravanserai.
Wael Al Awar’s studio wai wai is revitalising and conserving the area through an extensive architectural project. Al Awar was previously the curator of the Golden Lion-winning UAE National Pavilion at the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale and will take up the position of Creative Director of Architecture for the inaugural edition of the Bukhara Biennial.
Curated by Artistic Director Diana Campbell, who is also the Chief Curator of the Dhaka Art Summit, the first edition is entitled Recipes for Broken Hearts. It is conceived as a discovery of communal participation in arts and culture, and the healing power which arises from it. Campbell was inspired by a popular Uzbek legend for the theme, in which a man named Ibn Sina concocted the recipe of palov, an Uzbek dish, to put back together the shattered heart of a prince who could not marry his beloved, the daughter of a craftsman.
In the spirit of participation, collective healing and the exchange of knowledge, local and international artists will come together to celebrate this event and unveil their work, with several new commissions to be discovered at the biennial. Among the international artists confirmed are Laila Gohar, Wael Shawky, Himali Singh Soin, Subodh Gupta, Bekhbaatar Enkhtur, Delcy Morelos, Marina Simão, David Soin Tappeser and Antony Gormley.
The initiative is spearheaded by the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation, which promotes and preserves Uzbek art and culture through national and international initiatives, including the restoration of heritage sites in Uzbekistan, the development of artist-driven spaces and collaborations with museums and institutions internationally.
Commissioner of the Bukhara Biennial and chairperson of the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation Gayane Umerova shared: ‘We are thrilled to welcome creatives, thinkers, and visitors from all over the world to Uzbekistan, inviting them to engage with our vibrant culture and rich legacy. Building upon ACDF’s extensive work promoting Uzbek artists, designers, and artisans abroad, we are honoured to finally bring the world to Uzbekistan for the first major international biennial in our country. For many centuries, Bukhara was a global hub of trade, arts, crafts, and scholarship; and today, it is part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network for Craft and Folk Art. Informed by its glorious past and optimism for the future, Bukhara is the perfect location to launch this new international platform for interdisciplinary and cross-cultural exchange.’
The Bukhara Biennial will run from 5 September to 20 November 2025
