‘The Promised land’ had me narrating themes in the context of the UAE, exploring the visual landscape built every day by an expatriate labor class who will never occupy what they create, a vital yet voiceless sector of society.
To create this body of work, I decided to use wallpapers that are excessively used to fabricate offices and residences in this region. The readymade wallpapers were brought from ‘Dragon Mart’ supplies ‘Made in China goods. Dragon Mart caters to all sorts of industries selling all goods and is a type of brand to locals. Using a UV printing method, the construction sites' images were layered directly on these industrial wallpapers repeating, duplicating, and reiterating the city's image. The final layer was a painted depiction of manual workers, their journeys, totems of their everyday lives, and the dreams and wishes they had as immigrants.
Curated by Usman Saeed
2014
The Promised Land - Install shot
Clouds
Acrylic, solvent print on readymade wallpaper
130 x 90 cm
2013
Clouds - Detail
Two Men and Staircase
Oil, solvent print on readymade wallpaper
103 x 83 cm
2014
Two Men and Staircase - Detail I
Two Men and Staircase - Detail II
Infinite City
Acrylic, solvent print on readymade wallpaper
103 x 83 cm
2014
Infinite City - Detail
Men at Work
Acrylic, solvent print on readymade wallpaper
103 x 83 cm
2014
Men at Work - Detail
Plastic Aluminum
Digital Print on silver foil
102.8 x 82.7 cm
2014
Gold Doors
Digital print on gold foil
102.8 x 82.7 cm
2013
Pulse
Digital print on rice paper
104 x 137 cm
2013
Carpet Watch
Ink, digital print on BFK Reeves
102.8 x 82.7 cm
Carpet watch - Detail
Opulence
Acrylic, digital print on BFK Reeves
103 x 33 cm
2013
Windows
Acrylic, solvent print on readymade wallpaper
103 x 83 cm
2013
20 Million Man Hours
Acrylic, digital print on BFK Reeves
103 x 83 cm
2013
20 Million Man Hours - Floor Plan of Burj Khalifa - Detail
Saeed Akthar Gallery