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A graveyard of ships; the dazzling light of Algiers;
the melancholy of sea travel: Seafaring
presents new and recent film and photographic works by
London-based artist Zineb Sedira, set
against the maritime backdrop of North Africa, the Mediterranean
and the Atlantic. |
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MiddleSea, 2008, is a mesmeric, filmed
depiction of a sea voyage. The film traces the somnambulant
movements of a lone male, as he rambles the deserted corridors
of a ship crossing the Mediterranean between Marseilles
and Algiers. MiddleSea features an extraordinary soundscape,
created in collaboration with artist Mikhail Karikis,
which interweaves, distorts and intensifies sound recorded
on location. |
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This
work forms a companion piece to Saphir,
2006, an evocative juxtaposition of two film sequences.
Containing a ‘germ of a narrative’ –
two characters, a man and woman, strolling, waiting and
looking – Saphir is set in and
around the port of Algiers. Focusing upon the crumbling
grandeur of the 1930s Hotel Es Safir and views of the
Tariq Ibn Ziyad ferry, which travels to and from Marseille,
the work alludes to the desire for escape, belonging and
to return.
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Seafaring
also showcases a new John Hansard Gallery artist’s
commission, Remnants of a Scattered Vessel,
2009. Comprising fifteen lightboxes, the work presents
a fragmented, luminescent portrait of a ship’s carcass
on the desolate Mauritanian coastline. The appearance
of the boat’s remains and its decayed, rusted surfaces
signify a deathly finality – not simply the death
of a vessel, but the end of a journey. This is particularly
significant given that the location, where the desert
meets the sea, is now a perilous embarkation route for
would-be migrants.
Elsewhere, Beyond the Sea, 2008, a second
lightbox installation, singles out details of a vessel
– a bright red handle, the white sirens, a window
seat – offset against the glowing intensity of the
sky and sea.
Born in Paris in 1963, Zineb Sedira
has exhibited across Europe, the Middle East and the US.
She works between Paris, London and Algiers.
Find out more about the exhibition in our Exhibition
Guide, which is also available from our Gallery
Reception.
For further information about the artist visit http://www.zinebsedira.com/ |
Artist's Interview
John Hansard Gallery Director Stephen Foster
in conversation with Zineb Sedira.
Video produced by Zemedia, Southampton.
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Zineb
Sedira: Seafaring is a John Hansard Gallery
exhibition and part of Southampton Film Week,
2 – 11 October 2009. Saphir was
co-commissioned by The Photographers’ Gallery
and Film & Video Umbrella. MiddleSea
was produced by ArtsAdmin and funded
by Arts Council England, The
Henry Moore Foundation and Galerie Kamel
Mennour.
Image credits (top to bottom):
1. Beyond the Sea, 2008, Still image
from light boxes installation.100x120cm each.
2. MiddleSea, 2008. Video still.
3. Saphir, 2006. Video stills.
4. Remnants of a Scattered Vessel, 2009. Still image from
light boxes installation, various sizes
All images courtesy the Artist and Galerie Kamel Mennour,
Paris
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