Arab Women Artists Now Festival 2018
1-25 March (London)
In the Future They Ate From the Finest Porcelain resides in the cross-section between sci-fi, archaeology and politics. Combining live motion and CGI, the film explores the role of myth for history, fact and national identity.
A narrative resistance group makes underground deposits of elaborate porcelain – suggested to belong to an entirely fictional civilisation. Their aim is to influence history and support future claims to their vanishing lands. Once unearthed, this tableware will prove the existence of this counterfeit people. By implementing a myth of its own, their work becomes a historical intervention – de facto creating a nation.
The film takes the form of a fictional video essay. A voice-over based on an interview between a psychiatrist and the leader of the narrative resistance group reveals the philosophy and ideas behind the group’s actions. As the film progresses, the narrative and visuals alternate between the theoretical and the personal. The resistance leader’s deceased twin sister makes a crucial appearance as the story takes the viewer deeper and deeper into the resistance leader’s subconscious.
Larissa Sansour was born in 1973 in East Jerusalem, Palestine, and studied fine arts in London, New York and Copenhagen. Central to her work is the tug and pull between fiction and reality. In her recent body of works, she uses science fiction to address social and political issues in the Middle East. Working mainly with film, Sansour also produces installations, photos and sculptures.
Recent solo exhibitions include Bluecoat in Liverpool, Chapter in Cardiff, New Art Exchange in Nottingham, Mosaic Rooms in London, Nikolaj Kunsthal in Copenhagen, Turku Art Museum in Finland and Kulturhuset in Stockholm. A major solo show of her sci-fi trilogy will open At Dar El-Nimr in Beirut in April 2018.
Sansour’s work has featured in the biennials of Istanbul, Busan, Yinchuan and Liverpool. She has exhibited at venues such as Tate Modern, London; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Queen Sofia Museum, Madrid; Townhouse, Cairo; Galerie Nationale de Jeu de Paume, Paris; Louisiana Museum of Contemporary Art, Denmark and MOCA, Hiroshima.
Sansour currently lives and works between Copenhagen/DK and London/UK.
AWAN showcases the work of contemporary Arab women artists in the UK, Europe and beyond, providing opportunities for artists and audiences to celebrate, be informed and network. It exposes new audiences to the work of these often marginalised artists by providing a platform to present their work.
AWAN is produced by Arts Canteen who, every year, invite different Arab female collaborators to curate and produce the next edition of the festival. It is supported by Arts Council England, Aramex and Rich Mix London