\n
\n\tJEDDAH: Rami Farook\u2019s solo exhibition \u2018A Muslim Man,\u2019 which runs at Jeddah\u2019s ATHR Gallery until March 25, is a deeply personal sequel of sorts to a film he made in 2015, and traces the evolution of his life, identity and creative practice over the past decade.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe original project, a 64-minute conceptual feature comprising 16 vignettes, has now been reimagined as a labyrinth-like multimedia experience featuring 85 pieces, each of which is based on a scene from that film.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe self-taught Emirati artist was 20 in 2001 when he lost his best friend. Four months later, while living in the US, the events of 9\/11 drastically altered his life. As a Muslim, Arab-looking man, he recalls: \u201cI became noticed, vilified\u2026 it shifted everything.\u201d These events inspired a deeper exploration of his faith and identity, themes that are central to this show.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s about a Muslim man\u2019s relationship with God, self, society and family,\u201d he tells Arab News.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tFollowing the events of Oct. 7, 2023, and the outbreak of genocidal violence in Palestine, Farook turned to painting as a coping mechanism. \u201cI painted daily, summarizing the news,\u201d he says. This renewed urgency also shaped the exhibition\u2019s tone. The \u2018Muslim Man\u2019 is portrayed as both a victim and a hero.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tFarook describes the show as \u201can immersive, intermedia experience.\u201d It is his first attempt at blending multiple mediums into one cohesive journey. \u201cFor me, this was a fun curatorial process, way more magical than just watching the film,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe \u201cdocufictional\u201d exhibition is structured like a film, however, and unfolds across seven sections: context, protagonist, cause of conflict, conflict, response to conflict, climax, and moral, Farook explains.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tHere, he talks us through several works from the show.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u2018Aerial View\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\tThis is the poster for the show; the reason I like it as the poster is you can look at it in any of the seven sections I mentioned earlier \u2014 context, protagonist, cause of conflict, conflict, response to conflict, climax, and moral \u2014 and it could be in any of them. The character is a Muslim man. This shot presents him as a hero \u2014 because we\u2019ve seen the villain side too many times in the last 25 years or more. This show is showing the other side. He\u2019s on a ladder that looks like it\u2019s not in the greatest shape. The village he\u2019s looking at: is it alive? Is it dead? There\u2019s the mystery. And whether he is looking to see what\u2019s going on to eventually maybe protect it, we don\u2019t know. So there\u2019s a lot of mystery.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u2018Caring for His Father\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/sites\/default\/files\/pictures\/January\/3915446\/2025\/caring_for_his_dad_online.jpg\"\/)
<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\tThis is a closeup of me holding my dad\u2019s hand. He wears white, I wear black. My dad cannot see; he lost around 50 percent of his eyesight in the last 40 years, and then he lost another maybe 40 percent in the last four or five years. He just sees light at this point. So, I care for him, especially recently. And I just felt like I wanted it to be here. This exhibition is docufictional \u2014 it can be about me, but it\u2019s also general.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u2018Alone\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/sites\/default\/files\/pictures\/January\/3915446\/2025\/alone_2024_online.jpg\"\/)
<\/p>\n
\n\tI made a mattress that\u2019s exactly my height, my width and my depth. It literally just fits me. It\u2019s the idea that rest, contemplation\u2026 it all happens lying down in bed. Later, I thought it also kind of looks like a casket. Originally, it was going to have a fitted sheet or a cover, and a pillow; I made a pillow that\u2019s just the size of my head. I try to strip things down as much as possible to just the absolute basics. Maybe I\u2019ll add it later. This is a living exhibition; I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if I end up adding things later \u2014 there are some things here that weren\u2019t planned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u2018The Siege of Jeddah\/A Determined Defense\u2019\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/sites\/default\/files\/pictures\/January\/3915446\/2025\/the_siege_of_jeddah_1517_online.jpg\"\/)
<\/p>\n
\n\tThis captures the moment the Portuguese tried to invade Jeddah. The commander at the time, they put up a determined defense for about 30 to 35 days. It\u2019s significant to showcase it here because there\u2019s only two works in the show that are Jeddah-specific. So for me, it\u2019s beautiful. Jeddah is a city that I love very much. It makes you wonder, if the Portuguese did occupy Jeddah, how everything would be different now.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u2018Allah So Determined And Did As He Willed\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/sites\/default\/files\/pictures\/January\/3915446\/2025\/allah_so_determined_and_did_as_he_willed_online.jpg\"\/)
<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\tThis, honestly, is a (phrase) that is my cure to any worry. We all look back at our lives \u2014 especially at the big things that we invested time, money, or whatever, into, and we could always ask: how could we guarantee that things \u2014\u202fbusiness, relationships, or anything \u2014 would have been better if we changed something? This phrase actually helps me to not live with regrets.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Emirati artist\u00a0Rami Farook on his Jeddah solo show \u2018A Muslim Man\u2019: \u2018This is a living exhibition\u2019\u00a0…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":52055,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52095","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle"],"yoast_head":"\n
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