Abdulnasser Gharem

Gharem lives and works in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He engages with themes of control and authority. In his country, he has paved the way for the past twenty years with his unwavering commitment to social and political change through his artistic practice. Siraat (The Path) commemorated the death of several villagers from the Tihama region in south-western Saudi Arabia whom, in 1982, took refuge from a torrential downpour on a bridge which subsequently collapsed. Gharem visited the site twenty years after the event and spray-painted the remains of the bridge with the Arab word for path. In Concrete Wall II, the barrier functions to separate people. What makes this work so compelling is the surface, covered in tiny rubber print letters from both the Arabic and Latin alphabet. These letters are put on in the reverse, as one does with a printing press, conveying essential thoughts and observations on our contemporary societies. Gharem’s writing, if decipherable, requires a mirrored reading by the viewer. Once decoded, the messages speak to challenges shared by millions around the world.

Siraat (The Path), 2011
Silk screen print
50 x 70.9 inches

Courtesy of the ARTIST and MARK STRAUS, NY

Concrete Wall II, 2022
Rubber stamps and industrial lacquer paint on
9mm plywood board, 110.6 x 49.6 x 25.2 inches

Courtesy of the ARTIST and MARC STRAUS, NY