Born in Tanzania in 1959, Shaheen Merali is a multifaceted cultural practitioner whose career spans writing, curating, criticism, and art. His early artistic endeavors in the 1980s were characterized by a focus on social, political, and personal themes, often utilizing mediums like drawing, collage, and batik. Merali challenged conventional distinctions between art and craft, notably by incorporating batik into gallery spaces and imbuing it with narrative depth. His practice evolved to include mixed media, video, and installation.

Merali has held significant academic positions, including lecturing at Central Saint Martins and the University of Westminster, and serving as Head of Exhibition, Film, and New Media at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin. As a curator, he has been instrumental in organizing major international exhibitions such as the 6th Gwangju Biennale and the 4th Mediations Biennale. He co-founded the Panchayat Arts Education Resource Unit, which archived materials related to South Asian, Black, and issue-based artists, with its collection now part of the Tate library. Merali has also focused on exhibitions that explore themes of diaspora, identity, and activism, often working with artists from Iran, Palestine, India, and their diasporas.

Shaheen Merali was born in 1959 in Tanganyika, now Tanzania, to parents of Indian descent who had migrated to East Africa in the early 20th century. After his family relocated to the UK as British subjects when he was eleven, Merali pursued art education, completing a Foundation Course and undergraduate studies in sculpture. He began his artistic career in the 1980s, initially working with drawing, collage, and batik. His use of batik was particularly notable, as he aimed to bridge the perceived gap between 'art' and 'craft' by presenting it within fine art contexts and infusing it with personal, social, and political narratives.

Merali's engagement with the art world extended significantly into curating and archival work. In 1988, he co-founded the Panchayat Arts Education Resource Unit, dedicated to collecting ephemera, documents, and publications that highlighted the connections between art, activism, and artists from South Asian and Black diasporas. This archive, focused on issues of race, class, gender, and disability, was later donated to the Tate library. Merali has curated numerous impactful exhibitions, including 'Crossing Black Waters' and 'Extreme Unction, HIV/AIDS, RACE/ ETHNICITY,' which brought international and diasporic artists to prominent UK galleries. He has also co-curated major biennales, such as the Gwangju Biennale and the Mediations Biennale, often focusing on Asian artists and themes.

Beyond his artistic and curatorial endeavors, Merali has been a significant figure in art education and institutional programming. He served as a key lecturer at Central Saint Martins School of Art from 1995 to 2003 and as a visiting lecturer and researcher at the University of Westminster from 1997 to 2003. From 2003 to 2008, he headed the Department of Exhibition, Film, and New Media at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin. Merali is a frequent international speaker on contemporary exhibition practices and has been recognized for his contributions, including delivering a keynote address at the Aga Khan Diamond Jubilee Arts Festival in Lisbon in 2018.