 Faten Mostafa of Cairo's Art Talks gallery thought that the concept was more "like an undergraduate project" than the standards of the Biennale.Shady El-Noshokaty, a contemporary artist and co-curator of the 2011 exhibition, claimed that claimed that the selection committee represented more traditional than contemporary arts, and that the result of the ministry selection process would reflect government priorities and "artificiality".The head of the selection committee defended its open call for participants.