At first glance, Cityscapes (2010) seems to be a collection of panoramic photographs of the city of Istanbul—the kind that are found on postcards in souvenir shops. A closer examination, however, reveals that a key element—the minaret—has been systematically removed, thereby changing profoundly the history and religious character of the city. The work is a response to a November 2009 referendum in Switzerland that approved a ban on the construction of new minarets in that country. It was also a crucial time in Turkey’s negotiation for entrance into the European Union. Instead of making a direct, didactic comment on the controversy, however, Abbas offers up a clever question regarding how landmarks are interpreted in vastly different ways depending on their cultural context. In the Western imagination, minarets are political symbols as much as they are religious architecture. In the Muslim world, they serve as mnemonic devices that enable residents to recognize their own city.
Hamra Abbas, who lives and works in Boston and Islamabad, Pakistan, makes work that has a profound connection to her own cultural context. She asks probing questions about the everyday and its complex relationship with history and ideology; her subject matter ranges from religious rituals to war and the sexual iconography of the Kama Sutra. Working with a diverse range of materials and media, Abbas frequently intertwines the contemporary with the classic to offer up a critique of both modern Western and Islamic cultures.
DADYAA: The Woodpeckers of Rotha by Pooja Gurung and Bibhusan Basnet illuminates a unique and seldom seen international perspective on indigenous cultures and contemporary social issues in the Nepali context...
Angelica Mesiti’s piece, The Calling (2013-14) is a poignant exploration of ancient human traditions evolving and adapting to the modern world...
The Royal House of Allure is a name of a safe house on mainland Lagos where members of the queer community in need of boarding, due to various circumstances, live together...
Saturday, December 4 at 3 pm at Kadist Visit of the exhibition in the presence of the artists : Kate Mitchell, Ms&Mr and Arin Rungjang Please RSVP: assistant@kadist.org Wednesday, December 8 from 7 to 9pm in the Auditorium of Jeu de Paume “Fabrications: The Theatre of Everyday Life” presented by David Teh and Dougal Phillips “Unreal Asia” a thematic programme originally conceived for the 55th International Short Film Festival Oberhausen 2009...
Artist Wong Kit Yi’s A River in the Freezer combines directed and found footage to meditate upon glacial memory, cryogenics, and frozen fiction...
‘The Crown’ Ends as Pensive Meditation on the Most Private Public Family on Earth | KQED Skip to Nav Skip to Main Skip to Footer The Do List ‘The Crown’ Ends as Pensive Meditation on the Most Private Public Family on Earth Listen Eric Deggans Dec 14 Save Article Save Article Failed to save article Please try again Facebook Share-FB Twitter Share-Twitter Email Share-Email Copy Link Copy Link A ‘Crown’ recreation of a royal family portrait photo...
This photograph of Martin Creed himself was used as the invitation card for a fundraising auction of works on paper at Christie’s South Kensington in support of Camden Arts Centre’s first year in a refurbished building in 2005...
KADIST is seeking a Collection Fellow based in the Asia Pacific for November 2023 (6-month position with 8-10 hours per week commitment) KADIST offers a paid six-month collection fellowship to an emerging curator or recent graduate of art history, museum studies, critical writing, or a related field from college or university programs...
‘I thought I was god’s gift to China’: art gallery owner Pearl Lam on her ‘colonial attitude’ and embracing her ethnicity | South China Morning Post ‘I thought I was god’s gift to China’: art gallery owner Pearl Lam on her ‘colonial attitude’ and embracing her ethnicity Profile Art gallery owner Pearl Lam on growing up as the daughter of property tycoon Lim Por-yen, losing her colonial mindset and celebrating diversity Kate Whitehead + FOLLOW Published: 7:45am, 3 Dec, 2023 Why you can trust SCMP I was born in Hong Kong and lived in Jardine’s Lookout...
Karol Radziszewski, Nose up the Ass - Galeria Foksal Polski English GALERIA FOKSAL #Las Rzeczy Exhibitions Artists About gallery Contact Karol Radziszewski Karol Radziszewski, Nose up the Ass October 20, 2023 Opening: Friday, October 20th, at 6:00 till 10:00 pm The exhibition runs: October 20th — December 2nd curated by: Maria Rubersz Working with objects from the past, the archivist opens them up to the future...
The Royal House of Allure is a name of a safe house on mainland Lagos where members of the queer community in need of boarding, due to various circumstances, live together...