Abu Dhabi, April 20 (BNA) Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi, inaugurated the second Louvre Abu Dhabi International Exhibition for this year under the title “Paper Stories”.
The exhibition will run until July 24.
From the first century to the present and from ancient Asia to contemporary Europe and Arabia, Paper Stories investigate the rich artistic legacy of this fragile material that has not only become indispensable for record-keeping and commerce but has proven essential to cultural interaction and intellectual exchange for two millennia.
Created in partnership with the Musée du Louvre and in collaboration with France-Muséums as well as several leading international institutions and private collections, Stories of Paper explores the qualities of special materials: they are uniquely suited to recording, remembering and reproducing. Brittle, malleable, light-sensitive and flexible at the same time.
About 100 artworks and pieces from 16 museums, cultural institutions and private collections will be on display. These include books, manuscripts, drawings, a copy of a house, 13 contemporary artworks, and paper installations.
Paper stories include the famous Katsushika Hokusai Kanagawa-Oki Nami Ura (The Great Wave off Kanagawa), The Labyrinth, a huge labyrinth made of zigzag strips of corrugated cardboard by Italian artist Michelin Jello Pistoletto, traditional paper clothing and a room reconstruction of a Korean paper house, Artworks by Antonio Pisanello and Pablo Picasso, along with paperwork by Hassan Sharif, Abdullah Al Saadi and Muhammad Kazim, pioneers of Emirati conceptual art.
The exhibition will take visitors on a journey through time to discover the different ways in which paper has been used across cultures.
Visitors will also be able to enjoy a diverse public program of extensive cultural activities.
“With the advent of digitization and the dematerialization of our tactile experiences, it made sense for Louvre Abu Dhabi to celebrate paper as a common yet precious commodity. From books, manuscripts and drawings to contemporary artwork or installations made of paper, and stories, paper relives the chronological history of this single global medium. , taking into account the use and key properties of paper such as transparency and durability to provide an original perspective on the use of paper through time and across different regions,” Manuel Rabatti, Director of the Louvre Abu Dhabi said.
We are also pleased to invite prominent Emirati artists to be part of this joint dialogue with works exhibited by Hassan Sharif, Abdullah Al Saadi and Mohamed Kazem, all considered pioneers of Emirati conceptual art.
“Paper stories fuse contemporary works from Arab and European art scenes, like a labyrinth by the great Italian artist Michelangelo Pistoletto, a piece that underscores the enduring importance of paper for humanity,” said Laurence de Carr, director of the Louvre.
FKN