Hassan Sharif to be displayed in Venice

Hassan Sharif's Here and Elsewhere, 2014, installation view, New Museum, New York. Courtesy of New Museum, New York. Photo Benoit Pailley

A sculpture by Hassan Sharif, the most prominent Emirati artist who died last year will be on show in the main exhibition at this year’s Venice Biennale. The event, which opens this coming weekend (May 10) is the most important art event in the world and, to be included in the main section, is a huge achievement for any artist.

The theme of this year’s biennale is Viva Arte Viva. The curator, Christine Macel proposes a biennale designed with artists, by artists and for artists, about the forms they propose, the questions they ask, the practices they develop and the ways of life they choose.

Sharif’s work Suspended Objects from 2010 will be exhibited. It consists of countless long strands made up of multi-colored yarns, twine, string and wire, tied together and also wrapped around bits of plastic, foam and other found objects. It is, like so many of Sharif’s work, a meditation on the passing of time and the consumer culture we live in. Suspended Objects was part of the Here and Elsewhere group show now on exhibit at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York in 2014.

* La Biennale De Venezia takes place from 13 May - 26 Nov with VIP openings from 10-12 May.