Utmärkt Malmö 1
Hassan Sharif Until his passing in 2016, Hassan S
harif (1951–2016), who lived and worked in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, was a pioneer of experimental contemporary art in the Middle East. The travelling exhibition Hassan Sharif: I Am The Single Work Artist represents an opportunity for Malmö Konsthall to introduce this unique oeuvre, which was produced in a region of the world that Swedish audiences rarely get to access. Sharif is now regarded as one of the region’s most influential 20th century artists. Among younger Arabic-speaking artists, he is considered an important, established trailblazer, but it is only recently that his oeuvre has reached a broader audience in Europe. The travelling exhibition Hassan Sharif: I Am The Single Work Artist is the largest and most comprehensive survey of Sharif’s work to date and his first major retrospective show in Europe. Despite being so influenced by Western art, Sharif developed an artistic idiom of his own, which reflected the landscape, society, and visual culture he lived in, as well as the changes that they underwent during his lifetime. Hassan Sharif wanted to make art accessible to the general public, not just to art experts and collectors. This contributed to his early decision to work non-commercially, in the public spaces of the Emirate of Sharjah. He created his works out of cheap everyday materials, or mass-produced objects acquired from markets. Art can just as well be made from plastic cups, cutlery, flip-flops, blankets, or cheap toys as from any other material–this notion reflects his critical stance towards the consumer culture that emerged in the Gulf region after the discovery of oil. Many of the works in this exhibition explore the evolution of the city and of consumer society. Hassan Sharif: I Am The Single Work Artist, is on display at Malmö Konsthall up until 10 January. The Women Of The Sea It’s called ‘sumbisori’. The loud whistling sound that is created when old air is replaced with new air. The whistling makes the breathing go slower – and because of that the pressure in the lungs is preserved enabling the diver to manage more dives in a short space of time. This special breathing technique is developed by the Haenyeo. The free diving women living on the island of Jeju, south of South Korea, who collect shellfish, fish and seaweed for the family while the men stay at home to take care of the household. This custom that has been in play for hundreds or even thousands of years gives the women the chance to dive for up to seven hours a day and they can reach as far deep as ten metres underwater without oxygen tanks. Teknikens och Sjöfartens Hus is displaying the exhibition about these women and give an insight into a truly unique culture that was inscribed on the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2016. Haenyeo – The Women of The Sea is on display until the end of January. 40