Lawrence Abu Hamdan

Biography

Lawrence Abu Hamdan is a ‘private ear’, an artist who investigates sound. As well as exhibiting internationally, his work has been used as evidence at the UK Asylum and Immigration Tribunal and in major advocacy campaigns by Amnesty International and Defence for Children International, together with Forensic Architecture.

Abu Hamdan’s work has been presented in solo exhibitions at Bonniers Konsthall, Stockholm (2021); Secession, Vienna (2020); Towner Eastbourne, UK (2020); Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin (2019); Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane (2019); Contemporary Art Museum, St Louis (2019); Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art, Rotterdam (2019); Contemporary Art Museum St Louis, US (2019); Chisenhale Gallery, London (2018); Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (2018); Tate Modern Tanks, London (2018); Portikus, Frankfurt (2016); and Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Switzerland (2015). His works have been shown in group exhibitions at the Mudam, Luxembourg (2020); Munich Documentation Centre for the History of Socialism (2019); 58th Venice Biennale (2019); Sharjah Architecture Triennale (2019); Sharjah Biennial 14 (2019); Ian Potter Museum of Art, Melbourne (2018); Sharjah Biennial 13, Sharjah and Ramallah (2017); and Gwangju Biennale (2016), among others.

His work is part of the collection at many international museums, including MoMA, New York; Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, the Netherlands; Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; and Tate Modern, London. He is the author of the artist book [inaudible]: A Politics of Listening in 4 Acts (Sternberg Press, 2016).

Among Abu Hamdan’s numerous awards are the Jean Vigo Award for Best Director, Punto de Vista, Pamplona, Spain (2020); German Federal Foreign Office Dialogue Award, 33rd European Media Art Festival (2020); Edvard Munch Art Award (2019); Turner Prize, Tate, London (2019); Baloise Art Prize, Art Basel (2018); and Tiger Short Award, Rotterdam International Film Festival (2017). He was a guest of the DAAD Künstlerprogramm, Berlin (2017–2018), and a fellow at the Vera List Center for Art and Politics, New School, New York (2015–2017).

Abu Hamdan holds a BA from Middlesex University, London (2008), and an MA and PhD from Goldsmiths, University of London (2017).

Born in Amman in 1985, he currently lives and works in Dubai.

SAF participation:
Sharjah Film Platform (December 2019)
Sharjah Biennial 13 and 14
March Meeting 2017