Nermine Hammam, from the series Upekkha (2011). Archival inkjet print© V&A / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
Hassan Hajjaj, Saida in Green (2000). Digital c-print and tyre frame© V&A / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
With Light from the Middle East, a new display of more than 90 works at the V&A’s Porter Gallery spanning North Africa to central Asia, organisers are hoping to address the relatively sparse presence of Middle Eastern photography domestically, showcasing responses to 20 years of frequently tumultuous social and political change.
“In the past few years, contemporary photographic practice from and about the Middle East has been some of the most exciting, innovative and varied art anywhere in the world,” says Marta Weiss, who has curated the technically diverse survey of 30 artists from 13 countries.
“The exhibition will celebrate the creative and sophisticated ways that contemporary artists use photography to respond to the complexities of the Middle East.”
Shadi Ghadirian, from the series Qajar (1998). Gelatin silver bromide print© V&A / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
The second part features existing photos which have been subverted, from Iranian studio portraits newly festooned with sunglasses and soft drink cans to modernist takes on Israeli watchtowers in the West Bank.
And the final works look at images which have been manipulated, altered, or even scratched, burnt and attacked – among them Egyptian soldiers reimagined in multi-coloured “fantasy settings” far from the Arab Spring, as well as box camera views of Kabul.
The collection was originally established by the Art Fund in 2009. “This new collection is being formed at a time of profound change in the Middle East,” says Stephen Deuchar, the Fund’s director.
“Artists and photographers, as cultural commentators, are themselves among the agents of change. We much look forward to the exhibition in the autumn, which will showcase highlights from this important new collecting initiative.”
- Light from the Middle East: New Photography takes place November 13 2012 –April 7 2013.
More pictures:
Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige, Wonder Beirut #13, Modern Beirut, International Centre of Water-Skiing, from the series Wonder Beirut (1997-2006). C-print mounted on aluminium with face mounting© V&A / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum. Courtesy the artists / CRG Gallery, New York / In Situ / Fabienne Leclerc, Paris
Youssef Nabil, detail from the series The Yemeni Sailors of South Shields (2006). Hand-coloured gelatin silver print© British Museum / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
Newsha Tavakolian, from the series Mothers of Martyrs (2006). Digital c-print© V&A / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
Mehraneh Atashi, Bodiless I, from the series Zourkhaneh Project (House of Strength) (2004). Digital c-print© British Museum / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
Jowhara AlSaud, Airmail, from the series Out of Line (2008). C-type print© V&A / Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
