São Paulo – The Tomie Ohtake Institute, in the Pinheiros neighbourhood of São Paulo, will host the Miragens (Mirages) exhibition up until April 3rd, featuring 58 contemporary art pieces by 19 artists, mostly Arabs and Muslims. Among the Arabs, there are projects by Algerians, Egyptians, Palestinians and Iraqis. Projects by Iranians, Turks and even a Brazilian woman are also featured, though.
Unlike other exhibitions featured in Brazil, Miragens does not include ancient art or objects found in excavations. This show focuses on contemporary art from the Islam. The project’s creator, Rodolfo Athayde, and its curator, Ania Rodríguez, are also responsible for the Islã – Arte e Civilização (Islam – Art and Civilization), now showing at Banco do Brasil Cultural Centre.
The works on display at the Tomie Ohtake Institute include photographs, sculptures, video-installations and paintings. "Putting Miragens together was almost a necessity for us, considering our connections to the Islã – Arte e Civilização exhibition. We wanted to present a modern-day depiction of the contemporary Islamic cultural world," says Rodolfo.
He recognizes that promoting the exhibition was not an easy task. "The best we could do was to create an exhibition from the Western perspective. We located the Islamic artists that are most renowned in the West, those who have exhibited in the Venice and New York Biennials. From there we went to other artists," he says.
Some of the artwork attracts more attention. Such is the case with the series Mulheres de Alá (Women of Allah), by Shirin Neshat. It shows photographs of women’s body parts printed with Arab texts and characters. Weapons appear between their feet, on their ears instead of earnings, or between their hands.
The Algerian Rachid Koraichi features his "Those who pray" sculptures in the exhibition. It comprises several metal figures made from lines that imply movement. The same series includes the installation Você faz falta até à minha sombra(You are missed even by my shadow), in which the sculptures hang from the wall.
Other works invite reflection, such as the images by the Iranian Shadi Ghadirian. They show Muslim women at home with Western electronic objects: by a telephone, holding a vacuum cleaner or a cassette player. These and other works make the connection between East and West.
In another piece of work, the Iraqi Hassan Massoudy paints colourful Arab letters on separate canvases. In each picture, he rewrites an Arab saying. All of the pictures relate to one another by showing that their authors are paying attention to what takes place in their own worlds, even when, in many cases, they live away from their countries of origin.
"Art production in Muslim countries reflects the concerns that trouble people who inhabit that universe, and that makes it more dynamic than that of Europe or the United States," says Rodolfo.
Service
The Mirages exhibition will continue until April 3rd at the Tomie Ohtake Institute (Av. Brig. Faria Lima, 201, entrance through Coropés street, Pinheiros). Call 2245-1900 for information. Free admittance.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
