Hassan Hajjaj: La Salle de Gym des Femmes Arabes & Sara Naim: When Heartstrings Collapse
March 14–April 16, 2016
Preview: March 14, 10am–6pm
Galleries night: March 14, 6–9pm
The Third Line
Al Quoz 1
Dubai
UAE
T +9714 3411 367
www.thethirdline.com
Facebook / Instagram
Gallery 1
Hassan Hajjaj: La Salle de Gym des Femmes Arabes
The Third Line is pleased to present Hassan Hajjaj’s third solo show in Dubai, La Salle de Gym des Femmes Arabes. The title, which translates into Gym for Arab Women, is a continuation of Hassan’s depiction of strong and spirited Arab women in his vision of Moroccan pop-culture. The photographs included in this exhibition have been taken over many years and at different locations, only now coming together for this exhibition. Playing with gender norms associated with the gym space, Hassan inverts expectations with this body of photographic work featuring female figures of strength in the places where hyper-masculine imagery is featured, or imagined.
Hassan (b. 1961, Larache, Morocco) has lived and worked in England since his early teens. He predominantly works with photography but incorporates elements and references from North African culture, fashion and recycled objects. Hassan’s solo shows include: Hassan Hajjaj: My Rockstars, Newark Museum, NJ, USA and Worcester Art Museum, MA, USA (2015); My Rock Stars: Volume 1, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA, USA (2014, travelled from The Third Line, Dubai, and Virginia Commonwealth University, USA); Fashion in Motion, Victoria & Albert Museum, London (2005). Hassan’s work has been exhibited internationally in group exhibitions including Islamic Art Now: Contemporary Art of the Middle East, LACMA, Los Angeles, USA (2015); Light from the Middle East, Victoria & Albert Museum, London (2013); and Africa Remix, Hayward Gallery, London (2005). Hassan’s works have been acquired by Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Newark Museum, New Jersey; Brooklyn Museum, New York; the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; the British Museum, London; and the Farjam Collection, Dubai. He lives and works between London and Marrakech.
Gallery 2
Sara Naim: When Heartstrings Collapse
When Heartstrings Collapse is Sara Naim’s first solo show with the gallery. Sara’s interest in micro images, particularly that of skin cells, investigate the perception of boundaries and proportion. On a cellular scale all space is merged and the only variation is the different densities of matter. The photographs and sculptures of these micro worlds prompt an idea of something much larger or vaster, creating a discerning play on synchronicity and corporeality.
Sara Naim (b. 1987, London) is a Syrian visual artist who grew up between Dubai and London. She received her MFA in Fine Art Media at The Slade School of Fine Art, London, and completed her Bachelors in Photography from London College of Communication. Her solo shows include Heartstrings at Concrete, Hayward Gallery, London; Gallery 1, Pavilion Downtown, Dubai, UAE (2012). She has participated in group shows in London, Dubai, Cologne, Arles, Guernsey and Malaysia. Sara was an inaugural resident in the Beirut Art Residency 2015, Lebanon and will be participating in Cité internationale des Arts, Paris in 2016. She lives and works between Paris and London.
About The Third Line
The Third Line is a Dubai-based art gallery that represents contemporary Middle Eastern artists locally, regionally and internationally. In addition to this, The Third Line publishes books by associated artists and hosts non-profit, alternative programs to increase interest and dialogue in the region.
Represented artists include: Abbas Akhavan, Ala Ebtekar, Amir H. Fallah, Arwa Abouon, Babak Golkar, Ebtisam Abdulaziz, Farhad Moshiri, Fouad Elkoury, Golnaz Fathi, Hassan Hajjaj, Hayv Kahraman, Huda Lutfi, Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige, Laleh Khorramian, Lamya Gargash, Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian, Pouran Jinchi, Rana Begum, Sahand Hesamiyan, Sara Naim, Sherin Guirguis, Shirin Aliabadi, Slavs and Tatars, Sophia Al-Maria, Tarek Al-Ghoussein, Youssef Nabil and Zineb Sedira.
Media contact
Saira Ansari, Director of Communications:
saira [at] thethirdline.com, press [at] thethirdline.com, T +9714 3411 367
