Sydney-based Lebanese Australian artist Shireen Taweel knows how it feels to navigate the liminal space between cultures. Her new exhibition, Switching Codes, addresses the balancing act performed by so many around the city and the world more broadly.
Showing at Fairfield City Museum and Gallery until February 13, the exhibition features stunning copper sculptures crafted in the traditional way and punctured by intricate geometric patterns often found in Arabic art. In keeping with her focus on multimedia installation works, the sculptures also emit sound. Listen in to hear the low thrum of subtle tonal variations in the three languages most commonly spoken in Lebanon: Arabic, French and English. The sculptures are presented alongside a series of engraved copper tablets that hark back the earliest historical discoveries. Taweel's intention, as singalled by these beautiful works, is to project harmony between competing cultural expectations and signal a desire for new beginnings and unification.
“The works play with the fluidity of language between Arabic, English and French and its fundamental nature of being ever evolving,” Taweel says. Make the trip west, listen up and get washed away with this melodious art that’s truly inspiring. You’ll also be able to livestream an artist talk with Taweel on February 9 at 5pm by registering here.
