How can the distortion of language resist oppressive power structures? In what ways can depicting the body reveal and defy social strictures?

To find out, listen to Mithu Sen in conversation with SB15  curator Hoor Al Qasimi.

At Sharjah, Sen installed a mixed-media installation called I am from there. I am from here (2023) at the Calligraphy Square.

The work takes the form of a poem, in a script that resembles Arabic calligraphic forms but is in fact entirely fictional. Made using a combination of synthetic hair as well as Sen’s own, the text also includes emojis - and seems to allude at once to the expectations, possibilities and limits of communication. 

Sen’s work is on view at till 11 June 2023.

Click here to view it online.

Press play to learn more about Sen’s practice, process and SB15 project as well as what makes her work speak to our current time and place.

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