NIDHAL CHAMEKH • ET SI CARTHAGE? (2023)

Inaugurating our new space in Tunisia, Nidhal Chamekh’s exhibition will occupy all three exhibition spaces of the large-scale gallery. His latest body of work, mostly produced in Tunis, alludes to the parallel existence of the multiple pasts and futures that Martinican writer and theoretician Édouard Glissant imagined for Carthage. From his youth, Glissant was fascinated by the city and asked himself what encounters could have unfolded if the Romans had never destroyed Carthage. Chamekh’s speculative constellations find inspiration here, activating the potential of alternative perspectives and affirming the regenerative nature of reassembling the fragments of untold histories.

Fundamental to the formation of these reassembled histories is Chamekh’s extensive iconographic research. The exhibition is the culmination of a major project that has been at the heart of his artistic practice for several years, including during his 2021 residency at Villa Medici. Comprising large- and small-scale drawings, sculptures, scaffolding and transfers on fabric, this multidisciplinary installation urges us to take note of marginalised details and fragments that are often overlooked. Dedicated spaces will also display archival documents and film. Additionally, the gallery will run a public programme comprising: a live concert; a listening session of Tunisian mezoued music, linked to exile; as well as a film projection and performance.

Artwork:

Untitled (Freedom of movement), 2023

Terracotta, fabric, and metal structure

32 Rue Ibn Nafis

Z.I. Kheireddine

2015 La Goulette, Tunisia 

Entrée libre