Kaaba Picture as a Misprint

'Kaaba Picture as a Misprint' marks the return of the artist to the UAE following her award of the Abraaj Capital Art Prize in 2011 and the Jury Prize at Sharjah Biennale 9. Exhibition will run at Lawrie Shabibi until May 27, 2014.

Hamra Abbas' vast artistic practice draws from a myriad of sources. Her works originate from encounters and experiences, manipulated by the artist, transforming its scale, function or medium. Her intention is to deconstruct the act of seeing by recreating images that form part of a collective memory. Unrestrained by subject matter or media, she takes an investigative approach to produce a diverse and holistic body of work addressing notions of cultural history, ornamentation, devotion and faith.

In her new body of works Abbas continues to explore the alternation of scale and medium but within the context of the visual language of devotion. Using the Kaaba as the starting point of her enquiry, her inspiration comes from a variety of sources that are associated with the sacred construction and the Hajj Pilgrimage. By employing the visual language of religion and contemporary acts of devotion she seeks to address transformation and individual experience. 'Kaaba Picture as a Misprint' is an investigation about the ideas and ideals that are beyond medium and homogenized understanding; an invitation to a personal assignation of value and evocation of memory.

Hamra-Abbas / 'Kaaba Picture as a Misprint', Installation view / Courtesy of Lawrie Shabibi

Hamra-Abbas / 'Kaaba Picture as a Misprint', 2014 / Courtesy of Lawrie Shabibi

Hamra-Abbas / 'Kaaba Picture as a Misprint', Installation view / Courtesy of Lawrie Shabibi

Hamra-Abbas / 'Kaaba Pictures', 2013 / Courtesy of Lawrie Shabibi

Hamra Abbas

Hamra Abbas was born in Kuwait in 1976 and currently lives and works between Lahore and Boston. She received her BFA and MA in Visual Arts from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 1999 and 2002 respectively before going on to the Universitaet der Kuenste in Berlin in 2004 where she received the Meisterschueler.

Abbas has exhibited in numerous solo exhibitions most recently at Jhaveri Contemporary, Mumbai, India (2012), PILOT, Istanbul, Turkey (2012) and Green Cardamom, London, UK (2011). She has taken part in group exhibitions at notable institutions and foundations including the British Museum, London, UK; Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena, USA; Singapore Art Museum, Singapore; Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada; V&A Museum, London, UK; Kadist Collection, Paris, France; Devi Art Foundation, Guragon, India; ASAL partners, London, UK; Asia Society Museum, New York, USA; ARTIUM de Ãlava Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain; Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester, UK; REDCAT, Los Angeles, USA and most recently at the Gardner Museum, Boston, USA. She has also participated in numerous international biennales most notably at DeCordova Biennial, Lincoln, MA (2013), Asian Art Biennial, Taiwan (2011), the International Artists Workshop of Thessaloniki Biennial and International Incheon Women Artists Biennale (2009), Sharjah Biennale 9, Sharjah (2009); Guangzou Triennial (2008), Istanbul Biennial (2007), the Biennale of Sydney (2006) and the Cetinje Biennial (2004). Hamra Abbas was awarded the Jury prize at Sharjah Biennial 9, was one of the recipients of the Abraaj Capital Art Prize in 2011 and was shortlisted for the Jameel Prize in 2009.

Her works are found in the public collections of Devi Art Foundation, India; Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena, USA; Kiran Nader Museum of Art, India; Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas, USA; British Museum, London, UK; Kadist Collection, Paris, France, USA; Art In Embassies Collection; Walter Vanhaerents, KoÃ§ Foundation, Istanbul, Turkey and Borusan Foundation, Istanbul, Turkey.