Domestic Tourism II – The Film, 2009
Maha Maamoun
Domestic Tourism II – The Film
Still
Commissioned and produced by Sharjah Art Foundation
Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE)
Sharjah Art Foundation will present In Spite of it All, an exhibition of works from the Foundationʼs growing collection on November 3rd, 2012 at 6pm.The exhibition will be held at the Collections Building, Arts Area in Sharjah, and will run until January 3, 2013. Curated by Sharjah Art Foundation President and Director Hoor Al Qasimi, the exhibition features film, video and installation works by 14 artists. These works were either originally commissioned for and shown in past Sharjah biennials or other SAF exhibitions between 2003 to 2011, or acquired by the Foundation because of their resonance with the socio-political, cultural and economic realities of Sharjah and the wider region.
In Spite of it All presents a range of artistic responses to some of the most pressing issues we are faced with today. The personal and social cost of rapid economic and urban development, the struggle with a past that confronts a corrupt and changing present, notions of individual and collective resistance and survival in the face of stagnant political or social situations, are some of the topics explored in these works.
The artists included in this exhibition are Ayreen Anastas and Rene Gabri, Muratbek Djoumaliev and Gulnara Kazmalieva, Nikolaj Larsen, Maha Maamoun, Rashid Masharawi, Jean-Luc Moulène, Moataz Nasr, Marcel Odenbach, Melik Ohanian, Mario Rizzi, Raeda Saadeh, Jayce Salloum, Sharif Waked and Liu Wei.
Hoor Al Qasimi stated: “Collectively, these artistsʼ works engage with the ongoing period of tumultuous transformation our world is currently mired in. They explore the effects of modernisation, experiences of violence and terror, and the feeling of being imprisoned by a faceless system resistant to change, which 2 shape the lives and subjectivities of contemporary individuals. Problematising the promise of a better future and challenging nostalgic references to glorious histories, they work to cultivate a historical consciousness and a critical engagement with the past.”
In Spite of it All features the following film, video and installation works; Sharif Waked To Be Continued… (2009), Moataz Nasr Echo (2003), Liu Wei Hopeless Lands (2008), Mario Rizzi Out of Place (2005), Maha Maamoun Domestic Tourism II (2009), Nikolaj Larsen Rendezvous (2009), Ayreen Anastas and Rene Gabri What Everyone Knows (2006), Melik Ohanian DAYS, I See what I Saw and what I will See (2011), Raedah Saadeh Vacuum (2007), Jean-luc Moulène La Vigie (work in progress) (2010), Muratbek Djumaliev and Gulnara Kasmalieva Into the Future (2005)
Hoor Al Qasimi, President of the Sharjah Art Foundation, is a practicing artist who received her BFA from the Slade School of Fine Art, London (2002), a Diploma in Painting from the Royal Academy of Arts (2005) and an MA in Curating Contemporary Art from the Royal College of Art, London (2008). She is on the Board of Directors for MoMA PS1, New York and Ashkal Alwan, Beirut, and was on the curatorial selection committee for the 2012 Berlin Biennial. Her recent curatorial projects include Drift -- an exploration of urban and suburban landscapes (2011), and the upcoming In Spite of it All (2012). A solo exhibition of her photographic work Off Road opened recently at the Nevada Museum of Art, Reno.
Information:
In Spite of it All
November 3 – January 3, 2013
Collections Building, Arts Area, Sharjah, UAE
+971 6 544 4113
Opening Hours: 8am-8pm (Saturday-Thursday)
4pm-8pm (Friday)
www.sharjahart.org
This exhibition is free and open to the public.
About Sharjah Art Foundation (SAF):
Sharjah Art Foundation brings a broad range of contemporary art and cultural programmes to the communities of Sharjah, the UAE and the region. Since 2009 SAF has built on the history of cultural collaboration and exchange that began with the first Sharjah Biennial in 1993. Working with local and international partners, we create opportunities for artists and artistic production through our core initiatives that include the Sharjah Biennial, the annual March Meeting, residencies, production grants, commissions, exhibitions, research, publications and a growing collection. Our education and public programmes focus on building recognition of the central role art can play in the life of a community by promoting public learning and a participatory approach to art. Sharjah Art Foundation is funded by the Department of Culture and Information, Government of Sharjah.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Sharjah Art Foundation
Alyazeyah Al Reyaysa
Public & Media Relations Officer
Tel: +971-6-544-4113, ext. 17
E: alyazeyah@sharjahart.org
FITZ & CO, New York
Meg Blackburn
Tel: +1 212-627-1455 x 225
E: meg@fitzandco
t +971 6 544 4113 | f +971 6 544 7797 | PO Box 19989 Sharjah, UAE
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