{"id":11238,"date":"2022-11-07T15:51:30","date_gmt":"2022-11-07T13:51:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldmarkaz\/?p=11238"},"modified":"2022-12-25T11:21:40","modified_gmt":"2022-12-25T09:21:40","slug":"abu-dhabi-shows-noura-ali-ramahis-allow-me-not-to-explain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldmarkaz\/abu-dhabi-shows-noura-ali-ramahis-allow-me-not-to-explain\/","title":{"rendered":"Abu Dhabi Shows Noura Ali-Ramahi\u2019s \u201cAllow Me Not to Explain\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Noura Ali-Ramahi – Cheese Box – detail 2021-2022 – mixed media on recycled parchment paper 70 x 50 cm courtesy of the artist<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Noura Ali-Ramahi\u2019s \u201cAllow Me Not to Explain\u201d opens Nov. 10 and runs through Nov. 23, 2022 at the NYU Abu Dhabi Project Space<\/a><\/em> in the Arts Center, NYUAD<\/span> Campus, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.<\/p>\n

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Rana Asfour<\/h4>\n

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The new exhibition \u201cAllow Me Not to Explain<\/a>,\u201d from Lebanese-born Emirati artist Noura Ali-Ramahi, spotlights\u00a0\u201ceverything, anything and nothing\u201d according to the artist. The work is on view at NYU Abu Dhabi\u2019s Project Space from Nov. 10-23, and features a kaleidoscope of vibrant artwork based on the artist\u2019s practice of repetitive meditation. The show also seeks to shed light on the need to address the world\u2019s escalating environmental crisis \u2014 convenient given that the COP28 climate conference is slotted to take place here in Abu Dhabi next year.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy new work is a perfect example of how materials I find inspire my creativity,\u201d Ali-Ramahi explains. \u201cEvery piece of art on exhibit is made out of everyday material. It was my way to throw away as little as possible. I hate waste and shudder at the thought of the world\u2019s landfills. I\u2019m a certified diver and it appalls me to see how much of our oceans are filling up with rubbish and plastic. This is my way of turning paper waste that comes into my home into something beautiful\u2026If one thing comes out of this exhibition, it is for audiences to be inspired to re-use paper in more creative ways.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Noura Ali-Ramahi, shapes in “Allow Me Not to Explain,” 2022 (courtesy of the artist).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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\n\u201cAllow Me Not to Explain\u201d is a continuation of a series of works the artist labelled as \u201cNostalgia,\u201d \u201cPandemic\u201d and finally, \u201cLosing my Mind,\u201d which took place at the Etihad Modern Art Gallery at the end of 2021 and into 2022.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201c\u2018Nostalgia\u2019 was a very particular body of work that I did which was a collage made with plastic and paper, that reflected garden scenes, water and flowers. \u2018Pandemic\u2019 is the body of work I did during the pandemic lockdowns in which I used a lot of Emirati Talli thread that included a lot of repetition in the work. \u2018Losing my Mind\u2019 was the last thing I worked on before moving on to this exhibition, which was work that I found very hard to explain. I named it \u2018Losing my Mind\u2019 in a nod to Van Gogh, who once said that he painted in order to stop thinking. This resonated with me because losing my mind wasn\u2019t about going crazy during the pandemic, it was about stopping myself from judging my work and giving myself permission to wander with my thoughts, to free myself from my inhibitions and the struggle to explain what it was that I was producing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The artworks are abstract pieces, many of which are comprised of a multitude of colorful repetitive, uniform and interlaced circles, drawn using a combination of different mediums \u2014 paint, ink pens, and at one point, Tipp-Ex. The designs appear on parchment\/wax paper that came with a cheese order, a piece of cardboard that wrapped a delivery package, or even a paper bag from a retail brand.<\/p>\n