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Ajlan Gharem, "Paradise Has Many Gates," 2015-2018
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Ajlan Gharem, "Paradise Has Many Gates," 2015-2018
Saudi Arabian artist Ajlan Gharem launches the fourth edition of the Vancouver Biennale with a provocative take on the traditional mosque.
His outdoor installation, Paradise Has Many Gates, is designed in the architectural form of an Islamic mosque. What makes it unusual, beyond its temporary location in Vanier Park, is that it’s made out of chain-link fencing, more commonly used to keep people out or imprison them within.
The mosque, organizers say, evokes different readings about generational divisions, the designation of sacred space, the role of religious belief and the power struggle between religious constraint and democratic freedom.
“As we launch this new exhibition, with the theme re-IMAGE-n, we open with an artwork that’s transparent, which invites exploration into sacred space,” says Barrie Mowatt, the biennial's president. “In a time when we’re witnessing dramatic political shifts toward nationalism and isolationism around the world, we need to re-explore our beliefs, our fears and our vision for a new inter-culturalism.”
Gharem, a multidisciplinary artist interested in Saudi culture in an increasingly globalized world, is based in Riyadh, where he teaches mathematics.
The biennale, a non-profit organization, presents diverse contemporary art in public spaces.
Source: Vancouver Biennale