Organisers of the Karachi Biennale where an exhibition depicting the 444 extrajudicial killings by police officer Rao Anwar was “forcibly shut down” by law enforcement agencies (LEAs) on Sunday have said that the artwork was “not compatible with the ethos of the event”.
The installation titled ‘Killing Fields of Karachi’ by artist Adeela Suleman displayed at Karachi’s iconic Frere Hall was shut down along with threats given by men in ‘plainclothes’ which triggered widespread criticism and sparked debate about free speech.
In a statement shared with a local media outlet, organisers of the Karachi Biennale stated, “With regards to the exhibit in question, we feel that despite the artist’s perspective, it is not compatible with the ethos of KB19 whose theme is ‘Ecology and the Environment’.Politicising the [biennale] platform will go against our efforts to bring art into the public and drawing artists from the fringe to the mainstream cultural discourse”.
However, it went on to clarify that they are “against censorship of art and believe that expression is very subjective to the viewer’s interpretation of the artwork”.
The statement also expressed gratitude for the support extended to the biennale by Karachi authorities, saying the City government had allowed the platform to utilise public spaces to install artworks and “use the city as a canvas”.
In regard to the censored exhibition, the statement added, “And while art is self-expression, the theme this year did not warrant political statement on an unrelated issue as all artists agreed to focus on ‘Ecology and the Environment’ within the framework of cultural sensitivities”.
The organisers further said they hoped the artists’ community will understand that “any public event has to work within certain agreed […] boundaries”.
“To ensure a sustainable future of Karachi Biennale, it is imperative that we focus on its mandate to connect art, the city and its people,” the handout concluded.
