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Olivia Rhye
11 Jan 2022
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Al-Hadba' Minaret

Gorka Mohamed

Born in 1978 in Spain, and lives in Spain/London.

Medium

ink on paper (100x70cm)

Year

2022

Description

Gorka Mohamed is interested in latest body work in questioning the stereotypes and cliches of Arab culture projected by the West and vice versa through popular culture and mass media. Through his art practice, he conveys the existential frustration of belonging to a complex identity. In his paintings and drawings, one can find certain anxiety to visually unravel the different weaves and layers of his social environment. The artist attempts to reflect on what psychologically  affects human beings in a socio-cultural reality as if by presenting the toxic found in humanity, it would work as the catalyst for its own remedy. His approach in painting could be compared with the process of constructing sculptures or assemblages. Besides, the paintings embrace a polymorphous perversity close to the one that takes place in classical cartoons. Although humour, at a glance, may not be intuited, it is very present in his works. The characters intrinsically carry  stories with them, from which emanate a peculiar character.This is often manifested through the juxtaposition of opposites such as, for example, the unusual and the banal. There are various representations of the minaret Al-Hadba from Mosul, which was destroyed by Daesh in 2017. It has been a recurring motif in my art practice during the past few years. Mainly because my roots are in Mosul I’ve been  focusing on the Al-Hadba minaret; using it as a metaphor of resilience as I believe such strong symbols will never disappear for the people who live or had lived in Mosul (even though they are mainly destroyed) . Furthermore I believe that by insisting on the continuous appearance of the minaret in my art becomes a way to establish hope and contradict the reality; as by rebuilding what is destroyed through the act of drawing becomes equal as raising oneself or your community.

Instagram: gorkamohamed

The New Sumerians Project

Sundus Abdul Hadi

Born in 1985 in Baghdad, and lives in Ontario, Canada.

Medium

Digital Composite Image & Photography

Year

2020

Description

Around 7,000 years ago, an ancient civilization known as the Sumerians settled along the banks of the Euphrates river, modern day Iraq. Their story gives clues as to our origin. Time was established as we still perceive it, and their advanced understanding of the cosmos and astronomy suggests that our ancestors had a certain access to the celestial sphere that has since been lost in translation.

THE NEW SUMERIANS is an evolving project that honours the ancestry we carry as displaced peoples. In collaboration with photographer Ahmad Nasereldein, I have created portraits that I have manipulated with the sculpted facial and body parts of Ancient Sumerians, starting with the 5,000 year old mask of “The Lady of Uruk”. This iteration begins with my origin story: my family— the microcosm. This process of transformation pays homage to our celestial ancestors, despite the passage of time and the circumstances that have propelled us away from our homeland.

These ancient sculptures carry our burdens and have witnessed our pillage. The New Sumerians is part of a larger exploration rooted in storytelling and world-building; a supernatural dimension where ancestors live amongst the unborn, and intergenerational burdens transform into wisdom.


منارة الحدباء

غوركا محمد

ولد عام ١٩٧٨ في اسبانيا ويعيش في اسبانيا/لندن.

الوسط

حبر على ورق (100 × 70 سم)

السنة

٢٠٢٢

الوصف

في مجموعة أعماله الأخيرة، يهتم غوركا محمد في موضوعة التشكيك في الصور النمطية والكليشيهات المرتبطة بالثقافة العربية التي يعكسها الغرب، والعكس بالعكس، من خلال الثقافة السائدة ووسائل الإعلام. ينقل غوركا بِفنهِ صورة الإحباط الوجودي الناتج عن الانتماء إلى هوية مُركبة. في لوحاته ورسوماته، يمكن للمرء أن يرى جزعاً واضحاً في تصويره المرئي لنسيج بيئته الاجتماعية وطبقاتها. يحاول الفنان تقصي المؤثرات النفسية على الأنسان في سياق الواقع الاجتماعي الثقافي مفترضاً ان من خلال اكتشافه لما يُسمم النفس البشرية، فإن ذلك سيعمل كعامل مساعد في عملية الاستشفاء. ويمكن مقارنة نهجه في الرسم بعملية بناء المنحوتات أو التركيبات. علاوة على ذلك، فإن اللوحات تتضمن أشكالاً بدلالات وايحاءات متابينة المعنى كما هو موجود في الرسوم الكاريكاتورية الكلاسيكية. إن حس الفكاهة حاضرٌ جداً في أعماله رغم أنه  قد لا يكون بادياً من الوهلة الاولى. تحملُ الشخصيات قصصاً في جوهرها تنبثق عنها شخصية غريبة، وغالباً ما يتجلى ذلك في تجاور الأضداد كأن يتجاورالعادي بغير العادي. لمنارة  الحدباء التي دمرها داعش عام 2017 في الموصل تمثيلاتُ متعددة، وكان احياؤها فكرةً متكررةً في أعمالي الفنية خلال السنوات القليلة الماضية. ويعود ذلك لأن جذوري موصلية الأصل لذلك كنت أركز على منارة الحدباء واستخدمها كاستعارة مجازية للتعبير عن الصمود حيث أعتقد أن هذه الرموز الراسخة لن تختفي أبداً لمن يعيش او لمن عاش في الموصل رغم الدمار الذي طالها. أعتقد أيضاً أن الإصرار على إظهار المنارة في فني هو  وسيلة لتعزيز روح الأمل والتناقض مع الواقع. كما أن إعادة بناء ما تم تدميره من خلال عملية الرسم يقع على قدم المساواة مع الارتقاء بالنفس أو المجتمع.

The New Sumerians Project

Sundus Abdul Hadi

Born in 1985 in Baghdad, and lives in Ontario, Canada.

Medium

Digital Composite Image & Photography

Year

2020

Description

Around 7,000 years ago, an ancient civilization known as the Sumerians settled along the banks of the Euphrates river, modern day Iraq. Their story gives clues as to our origin. Time was established as we still perceive it, and their advanced understanding of the cosmos and astronomy suggests that our ancestors had a certain access to the celestial sphere that has since been lost in translation.

THE NEW SUMERIANS is an evolving project that honours the ancestry we carry as displaced peoples. In collaboration with photographer Ahmad Nasereldein, I have created portraits that I have manipulated with the sculpted facial and body parts of Ancient Sumerians, starting with the 5,000 year old mask of “The Lady of Uruk”. This iteration begins with my origin story: my family— the microcosm. This process of transformation pays homage to our celestial ancestors, despite the passage of time and the circumstances that have propelled us away from our homeland.

These ancient sculptures carry our burdens and have witnessed our pillage. The New Sumerians is part of a larger exploration rooted in storytelling and world-building; a supernatural dimension where ancestors live amongst the unborn, and intergenerational burdens transform into wisdom.


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