Tuesday, May 17, 2022

Desire Lines

... a convenience and a transgression of externally imposed boundaries ...

... a path that is first created by one individual and then assumes a collective form ... 

...  a site of beauty, visibility, and agency ... 

... the gaps -- the information that is absent, overlooked, or rendered invisible ...

Igshaan Adams


Igshaan Adams, Al-Muhyee (The Giver of Life) (2020)

Igshaan Adams, Al-Mu'id (The Restorer of Life) (2020)


The two roses at opposite ends of the exhibition mirror the journey of life -- or, more specifically, the path between two stages of my life, from the moment I first connected to the concept of my own inner light and the responsibility of using that for good. I show the same rose in these two works, but at different points of its growth. The rose here is still just opening up, and the one at the opposite end of the exhibition is at the pinnacle of its bloom and beauty. The title of this work, Al Mu'id (The Restorer of Life), is one of the 99 names of Allah, each one referring to a quality. From the Sufi point of view, these 99 qualities are reflected in each of us, but most lie dormant. How can we activate them?
Igshaan Adams

Igshaan Adams, Desire Lines (Art Institute of Chicago Installation 2022)
Photo: Larry Wolf (2022)


Igshaan Adams, Desire Lines (Art Institute of Chicago Installation 2022)
Photo: Larry Wolf (2022)


Art Institute of Chicago - Igshaan Adams, Desire Lines

Casey Kaplan Gallery - Igshaan Adams

New York Times - Art That Finds Clarity in South Africa’s Fraught Terrain

Soutbank Centre - In the Green Room - Igshaan Adams (video)

National Arts Festival - How I work - Igshaan Adams SBYA18 (video)

Nowness - Private View: Igshaan Adams (video, included at the beginning of the E.A.T. video)


Igshaan Adams, Al-Muhyee (The Giver of Life) Detail (2020)

Igshaan Adams, Al-Muhyee (The Giver of Life) Detail (2020)

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