Join world renowned collective Decolonising Architecture Art Research (DAAR) in their new program for the 25th Biennale of Sydney 2026, haṣīra (حصیرة): Framing and Unframing, with Think+DO Tank Foundation.
As part of their presentation at the Biennale of Sydney DAAR are seeking expressions of interest for volunteer members of the public with a strong commitment to decolonial practice to participate in this shared program.
Drawn from the Arabic word haṣīra (حصیرة), meaning a portable, adaptable woven mat the haṣīra is able to turn any ground into a place for sitting, meeting, hosting, mourning, celebrating, striking, and gathering. Its root ح-ص-ر (h-ṣ-r) means to frame, to enclose, to define limits. In Palestine and across the Arab world, the haṣīra frames territory, creates a room without walls, and declares: Here we host. Here we belong for as long as we are here.
To frame is to make a space, to lay the haṣīra (حصیرة) and call others in. To unframe is to refuse the limits imposed on where, how, and why we gather. Each time the haṣīra (حصیرة) is unrolled, it becomes as concrete as the ground it rests on. Light enough to carry under one arm, it adapts to each terrain, moves freely, and transforms spaces without waiting for permission. This adaptability is not just practical, it is political allowing gatherings to unfold in places where formal architecture is absent or denied.
As part of the collaboration with Think+DO Tank Foundation, the program will see 4 formal sessions where participants will gather on haṣīra laid on public space on unceded Aboriginal Land, where people of different geographies speak to one another through facilitated discussion and where grief, refusal, joy, and co-struggle can be shared.
Participants will be provided with food and refreshments.
Through this open call, we are inviting you to apply to become part of a core haṣīra group that will follow the entire haṣīra iteration. As a member, you will also be invited to bring friends, companions, and guests as hosts, welcoming them into the process and into the ḥaṣīra community.
For us, this open call is not only about participation in individual sessions, but about beginning to build a core haṣīra community, one based on continuity, hospitality, and shared responsibility.
For more information on how to apply to participate in the program, email programs@biennaleofsydney.com.au
NOTE: Haṣīra (حصیرة): Framing and Unframing is a voluntary program and the Biennale of Sydney is therefore unable to support participants with travel and accommodation costs.
Decolonizing Art Architecture Project (DAAR): Commissioned by the Biennale of Sydney and Rubaiya Qatar, Qatar Museums Authority with generous support from Alserkal Arts Foundation.
Photograph: DAAR, Tree School in Cairo, 2024, 5 meters. Commissioned by Sharjah Architecture Triennal. Photograph: Edmund Sumner. Courtesy of the artists © Alessandro Petti
