ARTWORK

WE PROMISE YOU
white textile thread, glue, uv-light

The artwork is made of white threads illuminated by uv-light. The threaded structure is applied to the wooden structure of the former salt storage. From only one perspective the Arabic text can be read, when moving through space, the word is bend and distorted, losing its readability. The message of the installation is addressed to politicians and their demagogic discourses, which, as an anamorphosis, from an angle of view appear clear and promising, but quickly lose all their senses as soon as one turns away. Then by discovering the work, the visitor is invited to look for the location of visibility, to observe the message, and to decipher it.

SITE Mediterranean Cultural Center

The storage building dates back to 1908 and served as a public treasure in Houmt Souk.

ARTISTS’ STATEMENT

The island of Djerba, by its urban and natural landscape, inspires us and allows us to dream. SEE DJERBA is an opening toward new adventures for us, with a serious and qualified team. It’s also a unique moment of exchange and complicity shared between artists, accomplices, coaches, visitors, and future colleagues, in order to take part “perhaps” in the construction of a better world.

We always start our building process from a space and the association it allows, we are guided by our ideas and we build by experiencing the impact of our interventions. Our projects have in common that they address the human body as the storage of experience as well as the collective memory and its shaping. We are interested in the interplay of the individuum and the collective, we reflect on the dynamics of individual and collective identities and their impact on religious and political culture.

ARTISTIC APPROACH

Their passion and commitment is their poetic vector. Houda Ghorbel and Wadi Mhiri are conceptual artists and work transdisciplinary with ceramics, photography, performance, light, installation, and interventions among others. Their concepts are reflecting on societal questions with strong links to sociocultural developments.

ARTIST’S FEEDBACK

We already took part in INTERFERENCE, and it was a great experience. After being asked by Aymen and Bettina to participate in SEE DJERBA, we were excited and immediately started thinking and creating. It was not our first time in Djerba, but the first time to work there, and the first time we find ourselves in this cross-cultural and international group. In the beginning, we felt lost, finding a site was not so easy and our quest took a big part of our stay. We found different inspiring spaces but with a big constraint until we visited the old storage in the Mediterranean Cultural Center and fell in love. It was the perfect space at the right moment. During our stay, we met new people, had deep discussions with different interesting persons, the time spent there was enriching and we made a lot of new friends, networks … The local community was friendly, welcoming and as soon as we arrived we felt home. We loved the atmosphere and ambiance. The shared catering was a great chance for meeting, exchanging, and becoming friends. The good vibes were everywhere. We think that SEE DJERBA was an opportunity to share, enrich, and create in an environment full of positive energy. The community was impressive, the volunteers were very engaged. SEE DJERBA brought light to the island. We hope to see this energy in the future.

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2017 | Tunis (tn) | ART MATTERS
2016 | Ségou (ml) | SEGOU’ART
2016 | Tunis (tn) | INTERFERENCE
2016 | Marseille (fr) | MuCEM
2016 | Tunis (tn) | Musk and Amber Gallery | BARCHA
2016 | Marrakech (ma) | Marrakech Biennale

LINKS

houdaghorbelwadimhiri.com
vimeo.com: Houda Ghorbel + Wadi Mhiri

PHOTOS

Ghorbel + Mhiri