GROUP EXHIBITION AT SABRINA AMRANI, MADRID (4 - 25 JUL 2020) Ver Versus Ver Invites Us To Reflect On What Is Beyond The Visible

Marcel Duchamp said that he was interested in ideas, and not in visual products. In this same sense, he also despised thoughts when they depended on words. But, before and after Duchamp, many pages have been filled, precisely with words, to talk about abstract thought, how ideas work, the conditioning of language or the background of the concepts. The same happens with images. Just one image - worth a thousand words, as the saying goes - can tell a different story, depending on the moment, the person or the place. If we do not know how to see, perhaps we are condemned to be deceived by the world. We cannot even trust what we see as categorical truth without questioning what we are seeing. Without reflecting, without looking beyond. Knowing how to see and question ourselves about it is an essential skill in life and art. The same happens with art: each artwork is not an image in itself, nor a set of techniques elaborated with more or less talent, but everything behind it.

Ver Versus Ver presents the context of an artist and his/her career, a concept, a whole story that may or may not be told. It is not about the difference between looking and seeing, but between seeing (and perhaps believing what we see) and taking a moment to reflect, to reach a deeper meaning. Seeing art implies reflection, and usually, it creates more questions than answers. But, are the questions that inspire our curiosity, that lead us to experiment, generate conversation and also understanding. In our opinion, it is the questions and not the answers that accelerate the learning curve.

To paraphrase Duchamp again, the works could be a product of the viewer and not the artist. Or, are they the product of a story, a trajectory or an idea that the artist tries to communicate? And, in the latter case, can we trust that our personal experience and our feelings, our perception in general, will not change what the artist wanted to tell? We are convinced that these and other questions are part of art, and we leave the door open for everyone to make their own.

Amina Benbouchta, Sol de Silex, 2014, Acrylic on gold leaf. 122 × 75 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Alexandra Karakashian, Parting III, 2019. Oil on sized paper. 200 × 104 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Alexandra Karakashian, Thoughts on falling XXI – XL, 2019. Used engine oil in the sized paper. 31.5 x 22.5 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Babak Golkar, Black Squared Red Square, 2018. Lenticular print. 121 × 91 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Babak Golkar, Imposition #12, 2016. Acrylic paint and hand-made Persian carpet. 90 × 40 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Gabriela Bettini, Pabellón de Pica, 2019. Oil on linen. 200 × 310 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Joël Andrianomearisoa, Couverture nuptiale, 2005. Textiles. 198 × 198 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Joël Andrianomearisoa, Les Saisons de Mon Coeur Untitled I, 2017. Embroidery. 18 × 62 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Joël Andrianomearisoa, Sentimental Negotiations - TRIO, 2015. Pocket mirrors and wood. 50 × 183 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Manal AlDowayan, Suspended together I, 2020. Porcelain. 21 × 150 × 140 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Manal AlDowayan, Mohammed and Oil, 2012. Silver Gelatin Print. 42 × 53 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

:mentalKLINIK, Liar (INCOMPLETE) -1103, 2011. Glass, Micro-Layered Polyester Films, Anodized Aluminium, Liquid Polymer Resin. 73.5 × 123 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

:mentalKLINIK, MOËT, 1801_B, 2018. Polished Brass. 74 × 60 × 73 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Nicène Kossentini, Infinitesimal, 2015. Ink on paper. 30 × 20 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Nicène Kossentini, Infinitesimal, 2016. Ink on paper. 75 × 50 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Timothy Hyunsoo Lee, Dalsun, 2015. Watercolour on Arches Aquarelle paper. 234 × 113 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Timothy Hyunsoo Lee, Haesik, 2015. Watercolour on Arches Aquarelle paper. 234 × 113 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Waqas Khan, Memory, 2019. Ink and acrylic on canvas. 244 × 244 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Waqas Khan, Dancer's Eye, 2014. Archival red ink on wasli paper. 68 × 53 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani

Zoulikha Bouabdellah, Silence Noir, 2016. Praying mats and stilettos. 360 × 210 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Sabrina Amrani