Jack Persekian | In the Meantime

In 1992 Israeli curator Jack Persekian founded Anadiel Gallery, the first and only independent gallery for Palestinian artists in Jerusalem. Persekian later founded the Al-Ma’mal Foundation to continue the gallery’s mission and to further promote, instigate, and disseminate the production of art in Palestine. In his talk, Persekian will share his experience – the challenges and the outcomes – of creating a space for Palestinian artists in Jerusalem. Have the methods for working in contested spaces, such as Israel, changed over the years? Does art have the potential to engage a zone of conflict in a different way than politics? Persekian was Head Curator of the Sharjah Biennial (2004 – 2007), Artistic Director of the Sharjah Biennial (2007 – 2011), and Director of the Sharjah Art Foundation (2009 – 2011).

Respondent: Nitin Sawhney, Assistant Professor, The New School (USA)