Faiza Butt Selected for Pakistan's Venice Biennale Pavilion Exploring Partitioned Punjab

Faiza Butt will represent Pakistan at the 61st Venice Biennale, the country's second participation since its 2019 debut. The Pakistani Pavilion, titled 'Punj•AB—A Sublime Terrain,' will examine the cultural landscape of Punjab, a region divided during the 1947 partition of India. Curated by Beatriz Cifuentes Feliciano, the exhibition foregrounds plural art histories and positions contemporary Pakistani art in dialogue with inherited traditions. Butt, born in Lahore and based in London, creates drawings, paintings, and sculptures that draw from cultural iconography and techniques like South Asian miniature painting. Her work employs provocative narratives to challenge gendered stereotypes and center marginalized voices, aiming to disarm cultural associations. The exhibition will be held at Ex Farmacia Solveni on the Dorsoduro Museum Mile from May 9 to November 22. Butt's art is in collections including London's British Museum and New Delhi's Kiran Nadar Museum of Art. The announcement was made by Pakistan’s Ministry of National Heritage and Culture.