Friday, February 6, 2015

Mona Hatoum - War, Identity, Suffering, Displacement


Suspended by Mona Hatoum


3d-Cities by Mona Hatoum.

Bunker by Mona Hatoum
 
Hatoum knows what it means to be a refugee - displaced from her country by war and political unrest. Her works address these global issues, but they resonate in a deeply personal way for the artist.  The red swings have maps engraved onto the seats -- cities and countries seem to always be  bumping into each other in this ever moving installation.  Borders change, cities shrink, people leave -- the dozens of swings suggest the complexity of a world in turmoil. The second installation reveals maps with concentric circles -- damage done by bombs or drones?  And finally the third dark gray installation of construction rubble reads like bombed out architectural frames that no longer hold a city together... perhaps a reference to Hatoum's home town of Beirut. The three installations were exhibited at White Cube in London in 2011.

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