Arab Express: The Latest Art from the Arab World

Arab Express
press release vol.1
27 January, 2012
Arab Express: The Latest Art from the Arab World
16 June (SAT) – 28 October (sun), 2012 MORI ART MUSEUM (53f, roppongi hills mori tower)
The Mori Art Museum is pleased to present “Arab Express: The Latest Art from the Arab World,” Japan’ s
first ever exhibition of contemporary art from the Arab world, from Saturday, 16 June through Sunday, 28
October, 2012.
Contemporary art from the Arab world is currently attracting attention across the globe. Numerous
exhibitions have been held over the past decade in art museums in Europe and the United States. There
are also clear indications that the art industry within the Arab world itself is maturing, with a new museum
dedicated to local modern and contemporary art opening in Doha (Qatar) and satellite branches of the
Louvre and Guggenheim Museum now under construction in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates).
Within this context, “Arab Express” presents works of painting, sculpture, photography, video and installation
by around 30 artists and artist groups, each of which has been selected as a result of our own original
research in the region. While stereotypical images of the Arab world tend to include such things as terrorism,
conflicts rooted in ethnic and religious causes, and political division, the Arabian people themselves of course
continue to go about their lives, and the exhibition aims to convey the realities and subtleties of those lives
to viewers through the wide range of artworks included in this show. As is suggested in its title, this exhibition
provides a news-like “report” on the Arab world’ s current state as well as its diverse and rapidly changing
cultures and lifestyles.
Tarek Al-Ghoussein　Untitled 23 (D Series )　2008–09　Digital print　100 x 133 cm
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Press Contact Details: Mr. Watanabe, Ms. Machino, Ms. Taki, Ms. Shinagawa, Ms. Kiriki
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum　Tel: 03-6406-6111 Fax: 03-6406-9351
E-mail: [email protected]　Web: www.mori.art.museum
Arab Express
press release vol.1
27 January, 2012
Main Features
■
Japan's first exhibition of contemporary art from the Arab world
By conducting our own research in the region and by drawing on our network of local experts, the Mori Art Museum has created an exhibition
focusing on 10-plus countries from the Arabian Peninsula and surrounds.
■
Diverse and complex artworks that correct a mistaken impression of homogeneity
From lifestyle practices to identities, the countries of the Arab world are brimming with diversity. The artworks on show help explain those cultural
complexities and provide a clear image of people’s everyday life in the region.
■
Eye-opening, unique forms of expression
The Arabian sense of aesthetics is informed by the region's traditions, religions, customs, climate and geography. And it is reflected in the many
unique and exciting forms of visual expression on show.
■
Arab Lounge
In order to help visitors gain a deeper understanding of the Arab world, the exhibition features an information lounge with the latest news on
Arab fashion, food, lifestyle, customs and religion. The Mori Art Museum will also host a series of lectures and events by Arab specialists in order
to establish a new dialogue on and with the Arab world.
PARTICIPATING ARTISTS　* in an alphabetical order
Ebtisam Abdulaziz
Adel Abidin
Atfal Ahdath
Jananne Al-Ani
Sadik Kwaish Alfraji
Reem Al Ghaith
Tarek Al-Ghoussein
Halim Al-Karim
Zena el Khalil
Abdulnasser Gharem
Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige
Rula Halawani
Lamia Joreige
Mohammed Kazem
Amal Kenawy
Maha Maamoun
Hassan Meer
Maha Mustafa and Ibrahim Rashid
Moataz Nasr
Faisal Samra
Hrair Sarkissian
Suha Shoman
Oraib Toukan
Akram Zaatari
[born in UAE, lives in UAE]
[born in Iraq, lives in Finland]
[formed and active in Lebanon]
[born in Iraq, lives in UK]
[born in Iraq, lives in The Netherlands]
[born in UAE, lives in UAE]
[born in Kuwait, lives in UAE]
[born in Iraq, lives in US/UAE]
[born in UK, lives in Lebanon]
[born in Saudi Arabia, lives in Saudi Arabia]
[born in Lebanon, lives in France/Lebanon]
[born in Jerusalem, lives in Jerusalem]
[born in Lebanon, lives in Lebanon]
[born in UAE, lives in UAE]
[born in Egypt, lives in Egypt]
[born in US, lives in Egypt]
[born in Oman, lives in Oman]
[born in Iraq, lives in Canada/Sweden]
[born in Egypt, lives in Egypt]
[born in Bahrain, lives in Bahrain]
[born in Syria, lives in Syria/UK]
[born in Jerusalem, lives in Jordan]
[born in US, lives in US]
[born in Lebanon, lives in Lebanon]
and others
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Press Contact Details: Mr. Watanabe, Ms. Machino, Ms. Taki, Ms. Shinagawa, Ms. Kiriki
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum　Tel: 03-6406-6111 Fax: 03-6406-9351
E-mail: [email protected]　Web: www.mori.art.museum
Arab Express
press release vol.1
27 January, 2012
Organizers: Mori Art Museum, The Yomiuri Shimbun
Curated by: Nanjo Fumio (Director, Mori Art Museum), Kondo Kenichi (Associate Curator, Mori Art Museum)
Curatorial Advisers: Wassan Al Khudairi (Director, Mathaf), Hoor Al-Qasimi (President, Sharjah Art Foundation), Ehab Ellaban (Commissaire,
the 12th Cairo Biennale), Salwa Mikdadi (Head of Arts & Culture Programme, Emirates Foundation), Muhammad Talaat (Director, Palace of Arts,
Cairo) and others
Venue: Mori Art Museum 53F Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo Japan
Open Hours: 10:00 –22:00 ｜ Tue: 10:00 –17:00 ｜ *Admission until 30 minutes before closing. *Open everyday.
Admission: Adult: ¥1,500 University / Highschool student: ¥1,000 / Child (4 years to Junior Highschool student): ¥500 *All prices include tax.
*Ticket also valid for “MAM Project 017: Lee Changwon” and Tokyo City View observation deck (excludes Sky Deck).
*Additional entrance fee to the Sky Deck is required: ¥300
Tel: 03-5777-8600 (Hello Dial) Website: www.mori.art.museum
Exhibition Outline
To date, the Mori Art Museum has held large-scale exhibitions exploring the contemporary art of,
specifically, China, Africa and India. We believe such exhibitions are an effective way to introduce the cultures
of non-Western regions to the Japanese public. “Arab Express,” which has been created through our own
research in the region, is the latest in this series and the first exhibition of its kind ever to be held in Japan.
Many Japanese view the Arab region as being particularly distant, but it goes without saying that the
people of that region go about their everyday lives, experiencing joys and sadness, in the same way as us.
For this exhibition, we have taken this concept of “everyday life” as the bridging point between the Japanese
public and Arab contemporary art. Thus we have deliberately selected artworks that relate directly to the
reality of life in that region. We have steered clear of the kinds of negative images that are emphasized in
the European and American media—terrorism, conflicts rooted in ethnic and religious causes, and political
divisions—and instead we have tried to convey the realities of the lives of the common people through art.
The exhibition focuses on the region reaching from Egypt in the west through the Arabian Peninsula and
as far as Iraq in the east. Of course, even within this region there are distinct differences in dialect, degree of
religious observance, clothing and all manner of other customs. The very definition of “Arabian” is something
that differs from person to person across this region, as are conceptions and realities surrounding “art.”
Hence, “Arabian art” necessarily represents a diverse collection of richly expressive forms. The exhibition
includes works by around 30 artists and artist groups, including painting, photography, video and installation.
It is divided into three sections, all of which are to convey and portray the diversity and current state of
contemporary art in the Arab world.
The title of this exhibition is deliberately reminiscent of a newspaper name or a rapid-service train. This
reflects the exhibition’ s attempt to convey in as up-to-date a fashion as possible the current circumstances
in this rapidly changing region. And thus our fictitious “newspaper” is suggestive of a question: What is the
current state of the “Arab world,” in actuality?
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Press Contact Details: Mr. Watanabe, Ms. Machino, Ms. Taki, Ms. Shinagawa, Ms. Kiriki
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum　Tel: 03-6406-6111 Fax: 03-6406-9351
E-mail: [email protected]　Web: www.mori.art.museum
Arab Express
press release vol.1
Section 1:
Everyday Life and Environment
In this section, we focus on artworks that provide a glimpse
into the little-known realities of everyday life in the Arab
world. The works introduce issues related to the problems and
contradictions stemming from a severe climate and environment,
the oil industry, rapid urbanization and political divisions. Works
referencing the rich Arabian popular cultures are also included.
27 January, 2012
Abdulnasser Gharem
The Path
2007
Video
Courtesy: Edge of Arabia
Section 2:
Stereotypes and Assumptions Relating to
the Arab World
This section includes artworks that resist stereotypes and
attempts to group the entire region under the singular
term "Arab." Many Arab artists these days are involved in
a reconsideration of the image of the Arab that has been
constructed in the West and may have been re-imported back
into their region. In so doing, those artists seek to create their
own images of themselves.
Halim Al-Karim
Untitled 1 ( from the Series
"King ’ s Harem" )
2008
Lambda print
170 x 75 cm
Collection: Barjeel Art
Foundation
Courtesy: XVA Gallery
Section 3:
Memory, Records and Thoughts on the Future
Things one wants to forget but cannot, things one wants to
pass on to future generations, things one wants widely known:
In the parts of the Arab world that have experienced religious
or political strife or social revolutions, art is often seen as a
form of documentation or archive. In this section we focus on
the "memory and records" of the present and the past. We also
reconsider the role of media such as photography and film, which
are presumed to convey reality; "collective memory," which is
supposed to be a shared repository of truth; and their fictious
nature.
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Zena el Khalil
Xanadu, Your Neon Lights
Will Shine
2010
Plastic toys, glitter,
cloth, beads, sequence,
feathers, artificial flowers,
photographs, photocopies,
canvas, insulation board
183 x 215 x 19 cm
Courtesy: Galerie Tanit
Photo: Christoph Knoch
Press Contact Details: Mr. Watanabe, Ms. Machino, Ms. Taki, Ms. Shinagawa, Ms. Kiriki
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum　Tel: 03-6406-6111 Fax: 03-6406-9351
E-mail: [email protected]　Web: www.mori.art.museum
Arab Express
press release vol.1
Press images are available on our website.
27 January, 2012
www.mori.art.museum
Tarek Al-Ghoussein
Untitled 23 (D Series )
2008–09
Digital print
100 x 133 cm
Reem Al Ghaith
Dubai: What's Left of
Her Land?
2008/11
Mixed media installation
Dimentions variable
Abdulnasser Gharem
The Path
2007
Video
Courtesy: Edge of
Arabia
Halim Al-Karim
Untitled 1 ( from the
Series "King ’ s Harem" )
2008
Lambda print
170 x 75 cm
Collection: Barjeel Art
Foundation
Courtesy: XVA Gallery
Zena el Khalil
Xanadu, Your Neon
Lights Will Shine
2010
Plastic toys, glitter,
cloth, beads, sequence,
feathers, artificial
flowers, photographs,
photocopies, canvas,
insulation board
183 x 215 x 19 cm
Courtesy: Galerie Tanit
Photo: Christoph Knoch
Akram Zaatari
Saida, June 6, 1982
1982/2006
Composite image
( C-print mounted on
aluminum dibond ) ,
video, sound
127 x 250 cm, 4 mins
( loop )
Courtesy: Sfeir Semler
Gallery
Rula Halawani
Intimacy
2004
Archival black and
white digital prints
( set of 9 )
Each 47 x 72 cm
Courtesy: Selma
Feriani Gallery
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Press Contact Details: Mr. Watanabe, Ms. Machino, Ms. Taki, Ms. Shinagawa, Ms. Kiriki
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum　Tel: 03-6406-6111 Fax: 03-6406-9351
E-mail: [email protected]　Web: www.mori.art.museum
Maha Mustafa and
Ibrahim Rashid
Black Fountain
2008/11
Mixed media installation
Dimensions variable
Photo: Sara Ibrahim