Bukhara Biennial unveils Interdisciplinary Programme for its Debut Edition

Friday, May 30, 2025
Bukhara Biennial unveils Interdisciplinary Programme for its Debut Edition

The programme for the inaugural Bukhara Biennial, Recipes for Broken Hearts, is released today by the Uzbekistan Art and Cultural Development Foundation (ACDF), including the lineup of participants, site-specific artworks and installations – with each work commissioned for the biennial and made in Uzbekistan – as well as events, performances and culinary activations.

Commissioned by Gayane Umerova and curated by Artistic Director Diana Campbell, the debut edition will evolve and transform over its duration from the 5th September to 20th November 2025. 

For the first time in the country’s history, the Bukhara Biennial will present over 70 site-specific contemporary projects, with each work conceived through collaborations between local artisans and artists from Uzbekistan, Central Asia and across the globe. Featuring visual art, architecture-inspired installations, performances, poetry and culinary experiences, Diana Campbell’s curatorial vision and title of the first edition, Recipes for Broken Hearts, embraces Uzbekistan’s recognition of craft and culinary acts as art forms, dismantling hierarchies across an expanded, multi-sensory journey.  

Under the leadership of Gayane Umerova, the inaugural biennial will unfold over a constellation of newly restored historic sites in Bukhara, marking the first phase of a new cultural district for the UNESCO Creative City of Crafts and Folk Art. Locations include Khoja-Gavkushon Ensemble, Ayozjon Caravanserai, Ulugbek Tamokifurush Caravanserai, Ahmadjon Caravanserai,Fothullajon Caravanserai and Rashid Madrasa. Illustrative of Bukhara’s architectural legacy, each of the chosen landmarks connects with and builds upon Bukhara’s centuries-old craft traditions to create something new and integrated into everyday life for the city.

Taking from the Uzbek term ‘oshqozon’ meaning ‘stomach’ or literally ‘vessel to prepare food’, the Bukhara Biennial’s Café Oshqozon centres the curatorial concept of the biennial as a body, fed through a nourishing, communal feast of different art forms, inspired by Ibn Sina, known by many as the father of modern medicine who was from Bukhara, and his recipes for both physical and emotional healingEach weekend of the biennial, an even split between international and Uzbek chefs will be invited to devise a menu, accompanied by an element of storytelling. In collaboration with ceramicist Abdurauf Taxirov (Uzbekistan), OyjonKhayrullaeva (Uzbekistan) will create organs out of large mosaics located across the biennial, connecting the sites as part of one body, with a mosaic in the form of a stomach placed above the Café Oshqozon door.  Welcoming visitors to share dishes that reflect global culinary traditions of Bukhara’s history within the global spice trade, accompanied by lectures, workshops, conversations, or film, the Café Oshqozon becomes a space to celebrate food as an emotional medium, weaving stories of grief and healing into performative culinary rituals. 

Chef and Buddhist monk Jeong Kwan (South Korea) will mark the opening and closing of the biennial, exploring the preparation of food as an act of meditation. With Uzbekistan home to Central Asia’s largest Korean diaspora, Jeong Kwan honours this heritage by making kimchi and bringing visitors into the transformational art of fermentation, where visitors can taste the timespan of the biennial, when her fermented foods prepared at the beginning of the biennial are uncovered at the closing to be consumed in a meal that celebrates the healing properties of time.

On the 23rd and 24th September, chef Elena Reygadas (Mexico) will explore the migratory route from the Americas to Central Asia through ingredients such as the tomato and pepper, now staples of Uzbek cuisine. Chef Fatmata Binta (Sierra Leone) will explore nomadic food cultures in a project running from the 10th to the 12th October, drawing inspiration from grains that survive drought in Africa and Central Asia. Artist Carsten Höller (Germany), together with Brutalisten Head Chef Coen Dieleman (Netherlands) and celebrated Uzbek chefs Bahriddin Chustiy and Pavel Georganov, will transform food into a nexus of science, art and emotion across the duration of the biennial. Further food-inspired projects include a pavilion made of salt crystals and Navat - artisanal Uzbek sugar crystals composed of grape juice and saffron - by Laila Gohar (Egypt), conjuring childhood memories and the wonder found through taste-based learning; an installation by Slavs and Tatars and ceramicist Abdullo Narzullaev (Uzbekistan) centred around the melon as a gift from the divine, according to an Uzbek local legend; a spiderweb-inspired architectural scale woven sculpture made from spices, earth, desert sand and clay by Delcy Morelos (Columbia) and spice merchant Abdulnabil Kamalov (Uzbekistan); and an embroidered 15-metre mural, mapping the movement of food and spices traded along the Silk Roads by Samah Hijawi (Jordan/Belgium) and  Ahmad Arabov (Uzbekistan).
 
Bukhara’s rich architectural legacy informs Subodh Gupta’s (India) collaboration with Uzbek chef Pavel Georganov, creating a culinary experience housed in a monumental dome cloaked in Soviet-era enamel dishes. The dome structure traces the culinary and architectural links between Uzbekistan and India, collapsing the distance between Central and South Asia, seen in the relationship between foods such as samsas and samosas. The Rice Cultures Festival, co-curated by Diana Campbell with Marie Hélène Pereira, will mark the closing of the Biennial from November 16-20th, gathering rice traditions from around the world, with Jollof Rice from West Africa, Pulao from India, Paella from Spain, and Bukharan Palov. Evocative of the palov competitions hosted by the Emir of Bukhara, the Rice Cultures Festival will be an interactive event for cooking and storytelling, with steaming kazans, cast iron dishes typical for making palov, creating the atmosphere of an emir-era feast.      

Weaving together many spiritual and cultural traditions, the biennial programming will present a mix of interdisciplinary conversations and creative collaborations from around the world. The House of Softness, occupying the 16th century Gavkushon Madrasa, will be the biennial’s space for learning with hosted symposiums, workshops and performances. Inspired by the House of Wisdom, the famed library of the Abbasid Baghdad, the House of Softness will be a place for grappling with hardship and softening the heart. A shading canopy will hang suspended from the mulberry trees in the courtyard of the House of Softness, designed by artist and architect Suchi Reddy (India/United States). Entitled Patterns of Protection, Reddy’s canopy draws on the embroidered patterns of Ikat, the traditional Uzbek fabric, with its familiar patterns conjuring feelings of healing and safety, forming a canopy of protection for visitors and a mobile furniture installation that becomes a site for collective learning.

Celebrating the city of Bukhara as a living, breathing workshop, the House of Softness will host participatory experiences, with live masterclasses introducing the crafts of Uzbekistan and addressing the heartbreak of erased traditions. Workshops will foreground narratives of overshadowed craft traditions, such as ebru, with participatory masterclasses led by Bukharan miniature painter Davlat Toshev, inviting visitors to engage meaningfully with this art form believed to have originated in Bukhara - pulling ebru from the margins of miniature paintings, bringing it into the spotlight.

Looking to the healing powers of movement and music through a multi-room installation, Shakuntala Kulkarni (India) will work with the Bukhara Philharmonic, forming a dialogue between body language and sound, working with singers, dancers and musicians. Collaborating with cinematographer Ajay Noronha (India), famed for 2009’s Slumdog Millionaire, another room will invite visitors to peer into a Tandoor, which like a womb evokes comfort and healing, with a film played at its base. Filmmaker Majid al Remaihi (Qatar) collaborates with Bukhara-based puppeteers to reinterpret the folkloric figure of Nasreddin, a lost wanderer who had misplaced both his donkey and his wit. Blending documentary interviews with local residents, the installation and video work explores humour as a form of collective resilience. Tarek Atoui (Lebanon), will engage with Uzbek musicians in a contemporary celebration of living traditions that link his long-term engagement with how music traditions migrate across Asia through the Arab world and beyond, with performances and workshops running from the 21st to the 23rd September. 
 
Accompanying their kilometres-long ikat tapestry that runs through the biennial as a textile artery, Hylozoic/Desires (Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser, India/UK) will perform a musical ritual with karnay performers, summoning water from the sky on the eve of each full moon in September, October, and November.  

(Left to Right) Painting of Oyjon Khayrullaeva’s project in the Bukhara Biennial, in collaboration with Abdurauf Taxirov and painting of a project presented by Hylozoic/Desires (Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser) in collaboration with Rasuljon Mirzaakhmedov, Margilan Crafts Development Centre, 2025.  Paintings are by Bukhara Biennial participant Yunus Farmonov and photos courtesy of Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation. 

A three-day symposium taking place October 6th to 8th and entitled The Craft of Mending: A Symposium on the Cross-Cultural Heritage of Uzbekistan, will explore Uzbekistan as a key hub for transregional cultural exchange through overlooked histories of craft, care, and repair. Closing the biennial from 16th to 20th November, the House of Softness will host a poetry programme, curated by Katya García-Antón, celebrating Bukhara as a “city of poets”, a place of importance to poets from thirteenth century Rumi to the twentieth century Langston Hughes. García-Antón commemorates this heritage and focuses on the tradition of epic poems, exploring how artists with poetic practices redefine what epic means in today’s world.

Anchored by the long-standing work of the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation, which has supported and worked closely with artisans across Uzbekistan for over seven years, the biennial is deeply rooted in an ongoing commitment to art, craft and education, spearheaded by the biennial commissioner Gayane Umerova. This foundational work and relationships developed with artisans has enabled the unique curatorial approach of the first edition, where local craft from across the entire country of Uzbekistan is brought to life through site-specific contemporary projects, made in Uzbekistan. The biennial marks the beginning of Umerova’s vision to restore Bukhara’s historic roots as a centre for creative production and intellectual discourse on the Silk Roads, with plans to expand the cultural district and programming beyond the biennial dates, to include a fine art museum, an exhibition space, a music school, a studio for artists, and a digital archive.

The current list of participants includes: Ighshaan Adams (South Africa); Rayhon Akramova (Uzbekistan); Rustam Akramov (Uzbekistan);  Khadim Ali (Australia/Pakistan/Afghanistan); Ahmad Angawi (Saudi Arabia); Ahmad Arabov (Uzbekistan); Andrey Arakelyan (Uzbekistan); Kamil Aslanov (Uzbekistan); Tarek Atoui (Lebanon); Rauf Avezov (Uzbekistan); Vahap Avşar (Turkey/USA); Dana Awartani (Palestine/Saudi Arabia); Aziza Azim (Uzbekistan); Bakhtiyar Babamuradov (Uzbekistan); Zilola Bagirova (Uzbekistan); Louis Barthélemy (France); Fatmata Binta (Ghana/Sierra Leone); Mathieu Bissonnee (Canada/UK); Jahongir Bobokulov (Uzbekistan); Behzod Boltaev (Uzbekistan); Sarvinoz Boʻronova (Uzbekistan); Abdulvahid Bukhoriy (Uzbekistan); Sabina Burkhanova (Uzbekistan); Hera Büyüktaşcıyan (Turkey); Caravane Earth (Qatar); Qu Chang (China); Yun Choi (South Korea); Liu Chuang (China); Bahriddin Chustiy (Uzbekistan); Lilian Cordell (UK); Denis Davydov (Uzbekistan); Binta Diaw (Senegal/Italy); Coen Dieleman (Netherlands); Ekaterina Enileyeva (Uzbekistan); Bekhbaatar Enkhtur (Mongolia); Yunus Farmonov (Uzbekistan); Pavel Georganov (Uzbekistan); Laila Gohar (Egypt); Rajyashri Goody (India); Antony Gormley (UK); Bahrom Gulov & Anvar Gulov (Uzbekistan); Fazliddin Gulov (Uzbekistan); Subodh Gupta (India); Pakui Hardware (Lithuania); Samah Hijawi (Jordan/Belgium); Hylozoic/Desires (India/UK); Carsten Höller (Sweden); Kei Imazu (Japan); Gulnoza Irgasheva (Uzbekistan); Eva Jospin (France); Temur Jumaev (Uzbekistan); Ilyor Jumaev (Uzbekistan); Bakhshillo Jumaev & Mukkadas Jumaeva (Uzbekistan); Dilnoza Jumaeva (Uzbekistan); Shonazar Jumaev (Uzbekistan); Aziza Kadyri (Uzbekistan/UK); Zi Kakhramonova (Uzbekistan); Abdulnabil Kamalov (Uzbekistan); Zokhir Kamolov & Said Kamolov (Uzbekistan); Khristofor Kan (Uzbekistan, 1934–2019); Nazira Karimi (Tajikistan/Kazakhstan); Dilnoza Karimova (Uzbekistan); Madina Kasymbaeva (Uzbekistan); Oyjon Khayrullaeva (Uzbekistan); Munisa Kholkhujaeva (Uzbekistan); Islom Khudoyberdiev (Uzbekistan); Jenia Kim (J.Kim) (Uzbekistan); Daria Kim (Uzbekistan); Vladimir Kim (Uzbekistan); Shakuntala Kulkarni (India); Hassan Kurbanbaev (Uzbekistan); Jeong Kwan (South Korea); Konstantin Lazarev (Russia); Anatoly Ligay (Uzbekistan, 1941–2001); Anna Lublina (USA/Germany); Sanjar Luqmonov (Uzbekistan); Jazgul Madazimova (Kyrgyzstan); Pavel Makarov (Uzbekistan);  Taus Makhacheva (UAE/Republic of Dagestan, Russia); Makhsudjon Mamurov (Uzbekistan); Han Mengyun (China); Hana Miletic (Croatia/Belgium); Rasuljon Mirzaahmedov (Margilan Craft Development Centre, Uzbekistan); Dana Molzhigit (Kazakhstan); Delcy Morelos (Colombia); Akmal Muhiddinov (Uzbekistan); Gulnur Mukazhanova (Kazakhstan); Yulduz Mukhiddinova (Uzbekistan); Qodir Murodov (Uzbekistan); Nodir Murodov (Uzbekistan); Anton Nozhenko (Uzbekistan); Abdullo Narzullaev (Uzbekistan); Dilnoza Narzullaeva (Uzbekistan); Azamat Nashvanov (Uzbekistan); Sanjar Nazarov (Uzbekistan); Oysha Olimova (Uzbekistan); Sara Ouhaddou (France/Morocco); Ulugbek Qosimov (Uzbekistan); Alisher Rakhimov & Shokhrukh Rakhimov (Uzbekistan); Abdullo Raxmatov (Uzbekistan); Suchi Reddy (USA); Majid Al-Remaihi (Qatar); Elena Reygadas (Mexico); Veera Rustomji (Pakistan); Zilola Ruziyeva (Uzbekistan); Ruben Saakyan (Uzbekistan); Zilola Saidova (Uzbekistan); Anhar Salem (Saudi Arabia); Azizaxon Salimova (Uzbekistan); Makhfuza Salimova (Uzbekistan); Aisultan Seit (Kazakhstan); Aziza Shadenova (UK/Uzbekistan/Kazakhstan); Kamruzzaman Shadhin (Bangladesh); Shiru Shakar (Uzbekistan); Wael Shawky (Egypt); Jurabek Siddikov (Uzbekistan); Marina Perez Simão (Brazil); Zuri Camille de Sousa (India/France); Tavares Strachan (Bahamas); Saule Suleimenova (Kazakhstan); Gulnora Sultanova (Uzbekistan); Malika Tairova (Uzbekistan);  Hylozoic/Desires (Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser, India/UK); Slavs and Tatars; Aleksandr Tolkachev (Uzbekistan); Abdurauf Taxirov (Uzbekistan); Davlat Toshev (Uzbekistan); Josef Tumari (Uzbekistan); Azamat Turekeev (Uzbekistan); Abbos Tuyev (Uzbekistan); Alisher Ubaydullaev (Uzbekistan); Abdurahim Umarov (Uzbekistan); Saidakmal Vahobov & Qand team (Uzbekistan); Erika Verzutti (Brazil); Sabrina Xomidova (Uzbekistan); Gulnora Yaxshiboyeva (Uzbekistan); Zavkiddin Yodgorov (Uzbekistan); Nomin Zezegmaa (Germany/Mongolia).

 

Main Image:

Bukhara Biennial Artist Nomin Zezegmaa at the façade of the Khoja Kalon. Image courtesy of Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation

Stephanie Cime

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