Lawrence Abu Hamdan, The All Hearing, 2014. Video, 12:42 minutes. Image courtesy Galeri NON and Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
Etel Adnan, Champs de Petrol (Petrol Fields), 2013, Image courtesy of Sfeir-Semler Gallery, Barjeel Art Foundation
GCC, Micro Council, 2013, Image courtesy of Kraupa-Tuskany Zeidler, Barjeel Art Foundation
Lawrence Abu Hamdan, The All-Hearing, 2014, Image courtesy of Galeri NON, Barjeel Art Foundation
Past Exhibition
23 August 2016 – 8 January 2017
The display Imperfect Chronology: Mapping the Contemporary II focuses on the theme of mapping geographies, examining the notion of statehood and exploring how artists engage with the rapidly expanding cities of the Arab region.
Drawn from the Barjeel Art Foundation collection of modern and contemporary Arab art, this is the final display in a year-long series at the Whitechapel Gallery.
Artists featured include Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Etel Adnan, Marwa Arsanios, Ali Cherri, Manal Al Dowayan, Sadik Al Fraji, GCC Collective, Susan Hefuna, Iman Issa, Jumana Manna, Sophia Al-Maria and Zineb Sedira.
In Proposal for a Crystal Building (2003), Iman Issa (b. 1979) imagines a shimmering and fragile glass monument for Tahrir Square in Cairo, while Jumana Manna (b. 1987) appropriates a limestone porch from disputed territories in East Jerusalem, re-contextualising it in the gallery.
A large abstract tapestry by Etel Adnan (b. 1925) and a series of photographs by Zineb Sedira (b. 1963) reveal the intricate networks and trade routes that make up the global oil and sugar industries.
Sat 22 Oct, 11.30am-6pm
Considering the themes raised in the Barjeel Art Foundation collection displays with speakers including Sultan Al Qassemi.
A fully illustrated catalogue edited by curator Omar Kholeif maps a genealogy of modern and contemporary Arab art. Price: £24.99
This series of four chronological displays from the Barjeel Art Foundation collection continues the Whitechapel Gallery’s programme opening up rarely seen art collections to the public.
8 September – 6 December 2015
Debating Modernism I explores the emergence and subsequent development of an Arab art aesthetic through drawings and paintings from the early twentieth century.
<strong>15 December 2015 – 17 April 2016</strong>
<a href=”https://www.whitechapelgallery.org/exhibitions/barjeel-art-foundation-collection-imperfect-chronology-debating-modernism-ii/”>Debating Modernism II</a> focuses on figurative works of art produced between 1968 and 1987.
26 April – 14 August 2016
Mapping the Contemporary I presents photography and video works made between 1990 and 1998.
<strong>23 August 2016 – 8 January 2017</strong>
<a href=”https://www.whitechapelgallery.org/exhibitions/barjeel-art-foundation-collection-imperfect-chronology-mapping-the-contemporary-ii/”>Mapping the Contemporary II</a> explores how artists using various media artistically engage with the cities where they either live or work.
See the press release
