Being and Belonging: Surreal Documents of Truth
Royal Ontario Museum steps into contested terrain with artists from the Islamic world.
Hayv Kahraman, “Levelled Leisure” (detail), 2010, oil on linen, 80" x 60" (© Hayv Kahraman, courtesy Michael and Seren Shvo)
“The artistic experience of the Muslim world in over 1,400 years is too rich, too varied, and too complex to lend itself to a single message, a single voice, or a single explanation.”
– Art historian Oleg Grabar
In a perpetually shifting world, contemporary art in the context of Islam is at the crossroads of various cultures, perspectives and ideologies. Recent controversies about the place of imagery in Islam have ignited new dialogues, unearthing contentious disagreements and profound insights. Likewise, in Islamic Aesthetics: An Introduction, American professor Oliver Leaman’s assertion that Islamic art should be treated like any other form of art history has been opposed by those who perceive the study of Islamic cultural heritage as a self-contained, object-centred realm. Such dichotomies are further fuelled by the complex aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, a backdrop for exhibitions of Islamic art that often clash with the media’s portrayal of Islamophobia, misogyny and violence.
Within this intricate landscape of dialogue, Being and Belonging: Contemporary Women Artists from the Islamic World and Beyond, on view at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto until Jan. 7, emerges at a significant juncture to embody a pivotal conceptual shift in the perception of contemporary art in Islamic societies.
Maïmouna Guerresi, “Blue Trampoline,” 2016, Lambda prints mounted on aluminum (© Maïmouna Guerresi, courtesy Mariane Ibrahim)
This transformative trend has been unfolding across diverse global locations, from Berlin to Singapore, reflecting a nuanced reimagining of Islamic art that harmonizes local perspectives within holistic understandings. One notable example is the British Museum’s 2021 exhibition, Reflections, in which artists from the Middle East and North Africa explored gender, identity, politics, history and cultural traditions through the lens of contemporary art.
Being and Belonging, curated by Fahmida Suleman and Silvia Forni, is positioned as the first show of its kind in Canada, encompassing works by 25 female artists from 21 countries using various media, including graffiti, textiles, mosaics and video.
Within this expansive gathering, artists confidently assert their diverse presence, actively participating in defining their own identities and demonstrating their capacity to shape their self-perceptions and determine the terms of their engagement with the world in ways that reflect their individuality and autonomy. This performative dynamic operates independently of the curators’ influence, yet paradoxically bolsters their significance in this intricate dance of meaning.
1 of 2
Installation view of “Being and Belonging” at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto showing “Falname” by the Turkish artist CANAN. (© ROM, courtesy the artist and ROM)
2 of 2
CANAN, “El (Hand),” detail of “Falname” series #36, 2023
ink, opaque watercolour, gold paint and pencil on handmade paper, 9.5" x 6.5" (collection of Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto; photo courtesy ROM)
Perhaps as an allegory, consider the exhibition’s enchanting Falname, a 71-piece spell-card series by Turkish artist CANAN, who has engaged in a feisty struggle over her name. During the pandemic, she became known for invoking 16th-century Islamic traditions by seeking auguries and guidance from the Book of Omens, deftly pegging the conversation between feminism and religious heritage.
What emerges as a central theme within the exhibition is the interaction between feminism and Islamic tradition. However, given the unspoken framing of intersectional feminism, it is prudent to look through the lens of recent scholarship, such as anthropologist Saba Mahmood’s groundbreaking 2005 book, Politics of Piety: The Islamic Revival and the Feminist Subject, which unveils the fallacy of universally shared desires among women and individuals, thereby disrupting core tenets of liberal feminism.
Huda Lutfi, “Hand of Silence” (detail), 2019
mixed media installation, 56" x 59" x 9.5" (courtesy the artist and Gypsum Gallery, Cairo)
Mahmood’s historical and contextual approach is echoed by Egyptian artist Huda Lutfi, whose Hand of Silence, is a profound commentary on history, culture and society that merges anthropological inquiry with artistic expression. Her historical allusions offer a profound richness, calling to mind Mummy portrait of a young woman, a 2,000-year-old encaustic portrait in the museum’s collection.
In dialogue with Lutfi is Senegalese-Italian photographer Maïmouna Guerresi with her Red Trampoline and Blue Trampoline, both from Aïsha in Wonderland, a series of three works that embody feminine energy and encapsulate the profound influence of Guerresi’s dual cultural heritage. The images can be seen as metaphorical representations of the delicate balance between two cultures, evoking the sense of being suspended between them yet preserving a harmonious equilibrium. (Guerresi’s broader body of work was on view recently at the Aga Khan Museum as part of Toronto’s ScotiaBank Contact Photography Festival.)
Lubaina Himid, “Bittersweet,” 2022
acrylic and charcoal on canvas, 84" x 60" (© Lubaina Himid; Rennie Collection, Vancouver; courtesy the artist and Hollybush Gardens, London; photo by Andy Keate)
The exhibition’s shortcomings become apparent when we consider its failure to delve into the dynamic and evolving boundary that separates what is considered modern and what is deemed authentic. It’s a rich terrain that offers insights into the complex interplay between tradition and innovation, the past and the present, and the authentic and the contemporary. The line moves with the passage of time, influenced by changing perspectives, evolving cultural norms and shifting artistic paradigms. To a discerning observer, hints of such a negotiation can be found in Lubaina Himid’s Bittersweet.
Tazeen Qayyum, “A Holding Pattern,” 2013
painted airport chairs, 32" x 72" x 28", installation view in “Being and Belonging” at the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto (© ROM; courtesy the artist and ROM)
The exhibition embraces celebrations of the migrant as a powerful symbol of universality, as witnessed in the art world’s globalization and the 21st-century boom in art biennales. By situating itself on the thin ice of “migratory orientalist” as a lens to explore the work of migrant women artists, the absence of counter narratives to such a framing becomes more eloquent. Here, I am thinking of artists like Yto Barrada (Moroccan-French), Heba Amin (Berlin-based from Egypt) or London-based Palestinian Larissa Sansour.
Contemplating the exhibition without the term “Islamic” in its subtitle raises intriguing questions. The exhibition strives to encompass a grand vision in response to an institutional impetus, appearing to position contemporary female artists within the realm of civilizational and geographical convergence. Viewed with this understanding, one can appreciate its novel arguments. However, some works flow outside that narrative, reading as addenda to accommodate curatorial compulsions. They contribute to a constellation of normalizing discourses.
Ultimately, decisions made in curating and exhibiting artworks reverberate far beyond gallery walls. They ripple through time, contributing to the tapestry of understanding and shaping our collective journey through history. Given her expertise, Suleman took the opportunity to discreetly situate a symbolic motif – the guarding amuletic hand known as Khamsa or the Hand of Fatima – at the exhibition entrance to ensure Being and Belonging stands as a testament to the transformative power of art, which can transcend borders, narratives and preconceptions, inviting us to explore the depth and breadth of the human experience. ■
Being and Belonging: Contemporary Women Artists from the Islamic World and Beyond at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto from July 1, 2022, to Jan. 7, 2023.
PS: Worried you missed something? See previous Galleries West stories here or sign up for our free biweekly newsletter.
