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blank projects: IGSHAAN ADAMS - Have you seen Him? - 22 Aug 2013 to 21 Sept 2013 Current Exhibition |
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Igshaan Adams, La, 2013
Steel ring, string curtain, acrylic glue 168 x 59 x 35cm |
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IGSHAAN ADAMS Have you seen Him? 22/08/2013 - 21/09/2013 The title of the exhibition references fabled sayings by Mullah Nasiruddin, the 13th century Seljuq satirical Sufi who is often referred to as "the wise fool". Adams identifies with the populist philosopher's often humorous searches for God in domestic and other commonplace objects. The exhibition features installation works and embroideries. The latter represents furniture pieces based on particular objects of personal, family and religious significance. Adams renders the objects incomplete, or with structural weaknesses counter to their quotidian functionality. The array of predominantly textile-based installations allude to disturbances within the comforts of home: explicating what happens when home becomes a place of danger. The personal narrative that runs through the work culminates in If that I knew, the largest installation in the exhibition. The focal point of this work is a carpet of prayer mats representing a prone dog juxtaposed with the patterns and architectural elements inherent in the design of the carpets. Adams explains: "In Islam the dog is considered an impure animal. Superimposing the image of the dog on the Holy City is an act of claiming a stake despite rejection and ridicule. All the works in this body are conversations: between God and myself, moments and experiences. These conversations are often argumentative, conflictual, yet, intimate and at times reassuring." Igshaan Adams' work speaks to his experiences of racial, religious and sexual liminality in South Africa. Adams makes use of the material and formal iconographies of Islam and “coloured” culture to develop an equivocal, phenomenological exploration of these ideas through his installation and mixed-media works. Adams (b.1982 Cape Town) graduated in 2009 with a Diploma in Fine Art from the Ruth Prowse School of Art, Cape Town. His first solo exhibition Vinyl was held at the AVA Gallery in Cape Town in 2010, followed by In Between at Stevenson Gallery [2011] and If that I knew [2013] at the Rongwrong gallery in Amsterdam. Selected group exhibitions include Swallow My Pride at blank projects [2010] and What we talk about when we talk about love at Stevenson [2011]. In 2012 Wanted magazine selected Adams as one of it's 12 Young African Artists featured at the Joburg Art Fair, and in 2013 he was awarded the IAAB/ProHelvetia residency in Basel, Switzerland, which culminated in a solo exhibition at the Basement project space in Basel. This is Adams' first solo exhibition at blank projects. blank projects 113-115 Sir Lowry Road, Woodstock, Cape Town t: +27 21 4624276 Jonathan Garnham m: +27 72 1989 221 [email protected] www.blankprojects.com Gallery opening hours: Tue-Fri: 10:00 - 17:00, Sat: 10:00 - 13:00. Closed on Mondays & public holidays. |
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