Warhol of Arabia
2016-2018 | Photographs, neon, mixed media, text | Variable dimensions
Commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation
The Exhibition I, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Exhibition XIII, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Party I, photography, mixed media, 50 cm x 72,5 cm
The Exhibition V, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Party V, photography, mixed media, 50 cm x 72,5 cm
The Party VII, photography, mixed media, 50 cm x 72,5 cm
The Exhibition VI, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Exhibition VII, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Party III, photography, mixed media, 50 cm x 72,5 cm
The Exhibition IX, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Exhibition XI, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Signing, photography, 20 cm x 28 cm
The Exhibition XII, photography, mixed media, 100 cm x 145 cm
The Party IX, photography, mixed media, 50 cm x 72,5 cm
The Party XII, photography, mixed media, 50 cm x 72,5 cm
Warhol of Arabia presents an elaborate scenario of a docu-fictional nature based on the archives of Sultan Gallery, Kuwait. Set in Kuwait in 1977, the work revolves around Andy Warhol’s visit to the city on the occasion of his solo exhibition at Salat Al Funoon [The Arts Gallery] that year. The installation playfully examines the nature and mechanisms of celebrity culture by featuring Warhol as the central character. One of the most influential celebrity figures of the late twentieth century, he embodies the attitudes of the pop star and the star artist simultaneously.
The project seeks to draw a constellation of figures, forms and forces that activated Warhol’s unique visit, assembling a space made up of original and fabricated artworks, real and counterfeit paperwork, and archival photographs. The installation also transforms instruments of celebrity culture into works of art, turning, for example, a rumor into a painting. Warhol of Arabia investigates how the interplay between Warhol’s persona and his art makes itself visible through the politics of exhibition making, production and the art market in the Gulf region at the time.
Exhibition views - Sharjah Art Foundation - photos by Shanavas Jamaluddin
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
Warhol of Arabia, Exhibition view, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
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