The National Pavilion of the UAE at the 55th International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale is presenting “Walking on Water” — a solo exhibition by well-known Emirati artist Mohammad Kazem.
The show features a specially commissioned immersive installation, titled “Directions 2005/2013”, comprising a 360-degree projection of the sea and illuminated interchangeable Geographical Positioning System (GPS) coordinates within an enclosed chamber.
The visual effect created by 15 projectors, combined with the sound of the waves, gives viewers the feeling of being lost at sea. The work is a symbolic representation of the breaking down of barriers between countries and people.
And by casting viewers adrift in that endless expanse of water, Kazem engages them with his work physically and conceptually, inviting them to experience the feeling of being disoriented and displaced, but also to walk fearlessly on the water, to travel freely across geographical and mental borders, and to question and challenge their perceptions of openness and universality.
The exhibition is curated by Reem Fadda, associate curator of Middle Eastern Art for Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, and organised under the leadership of Dr Lamees Hamdan, commissioner of the pavilion.
“Today, our world remains hindered with the ideas of boundaries and restrictions, and openness remains one of the illusive ideas of our times. The conceptual trajectory of Mohammad Kazem’s practice has constantly been to confront boundaries and limitations, be it material or natural.
These symbolic acts of breaking shackles and inhibitions are his way of asserting his humanity and existence. Through intuition and deliberation, he investigates the natural and physical restrictions, especially those of the sea, to not only question but also assert the right to roam free — spiritually, conceptually and materially,” Fadda says.
Dubai-born Kazem is known as a pioneer in the UAE contemporary art scene because of his interest in conceptual art and experimentation with new media and technologies. He left school to study art at the Emirates Fine Art Society, and went on to study music and attend various national and international art workshops.
His installation at Venice is part of his iconic “Directions” series, begun in 1999. In this series, Kazem uses GPS coordinates to document his whereabouts, symbolically referencing his very existence, and addressing political, social and environmental issues. He spoke with Weekend Review about his artistic journey and the evolution of the “Directions” series. Excerpts:
Was it difficult to be an artist while you were in the UAE army?
My job in the military (from 1986 until my retirement in 2010) helped me to sustain myself as an artist. My inspiration comes from everyday life. So, while working as a store manager in the military, I did a photographic series called “Wooden Box” that reflected my daily routine of getting different things from various shelves in the office.
I also found time to teach at the Dubai Art Atelier and curate exhibitions, because with no art education in schools, we had to take the responsibility of preparing the next generation of artists and organising exhibitions for them.
What motivated you to experiment with different media and materials?
I try to find the best way of expressing a particular concept. I used paper for the “Scratch on paper” series, where the scratches are a visual representation of sound, harmony, rhythm and movement. In the 1990s I started using photography to document my relationship with my surroundings, often using my own body to mimic the body language of the people around me.
In my “Flags” series I documented the rapid changes in the landscape of the UAE by photographing myself standing next to flags marking construction sites. And in the “Window” series I captured different stages in the construction of a building from my window to comment on the status of the construction workers. I have also used LED installations, video and film to express my ideas.
What inspired the “Directions” series, and how has it evolved?
The trigger for this series was the frightening experience of falling out of the boat during a fishing trip. I was struggling in the water for half an hour before being rescued. That got me thinking about using a GPS to mark my location just like we marked the location of our fishing nets in the sea.
The GPS became a way of recording where I am and emanating my existence. And I have used it in various ways in my work. I first used it in 1999 for a series of photographs of the instrument placed at the feet of various people on the streets, as a kind of silent interaction with the people and environment of my city.
In a more abstract approach, I have used an LED installation featuring GPS coordinates of three different points in Dubai to represent a triangle. The idea of crossing borders and walking on water came into the work in a photographed performance in 2002, when I engraved coordinates from the eastern part of the UAE on to wooden blocks and threw them into the Arabian Sea to be carried by the wind and the waves across various borders.
In Germany, I cut leaves in the shape of numbers representing some coordinates and threw them into the river to walk across the water. “Directions 2005/2013” is so named because it was conceived in 2005 and exhibited as a maquette, but could not be realised due to financial and technical complications of producing such a large-scale work.
What projects are you working on now?
Life has come full circle for me in many ways. I have gone back to drawing and have created a series of more than 120 pencil drawings depicting various aspects of life in the UAE.
Despite being a school dropout, the University of Philadelphia accepted me in their masters programme based on my work and I recently received my masters degree in fine art. I am now happy to work full-time as an artist in my studio, called Empty 10, and am also focusing on systematically archiving my work.
How do you look back on your journey as an artist?
I think leaving school to focus on art was a good decision. I was lucky to have a mentor like Hassan Sharif, who is a pioneer of contemporary art in the UAE and was dedicated to nurturing the next generation.
I was also fortunate to be in a place where art is encouraged and appreciated and artists can freely experiment and express themselves. I am very optimistic about the future of the art scene here.
Jyoti Kalsi is an arts enthusiast based in Dubai.
