Hana Al-Saadi Qatari, b. 1989
Skin Tiles, 2024
Rubber and foam
Variable
Sold
An interactive installation, Skin Tiles is a soft sculpture composed of 8 'mattresses' of skin tiles, measuring on average 2 x 1.2 m. Floored, stretched, and poised in a foetal...
An interactive installation, Skin Tiles is a soft sculpture composed of 8 'mattresses' of skin tiles, measuring on average 2 x 1.2 m. Floored, stretched, and poised in a foetal position, the work invites viewers to enter Hana’s envisioned abode to play, rest, or even lay down. The marbled rubber tiles are made of imprints of the texture of her own covered skin, reincarnated in different shades and tones. Just like peeling off the outer skin of a fruit, Hana scrutinises corporeality to reveal what lies beneath.
Hana is known for finding and presenting loopholes in her work. In this installation, the loophole is a rather obvious one as she presents the texture of her skin and offers it to be played with. As a covered woman, she presents the mattresses, each corresponding to her skin tone and texture, offering herself available to the public to be interacted with. The marbled effect speaks to Hana's observations regarding the local obsession with certain aesthetics. Often, it is enough that something looks luxurious, for instance marble-like, but does not have to be the 'real thing'. The marbled tiles, then, tackle the issue of surface-level luxury and the performance of an upper class identity which often functions as a mark to hide the core or the origins of our identity.
Hana is known for finding and presenting loopholes in her work. In this installation, the loophole is a rather obvious one as she presents the texture of her skin and offers it to be played with. As a covered woman, she presents the mattresses, each corresponding to her skin tone and texture, offering herself available to the public to be interacted with. The marbled effect speaks to Hana's observations regarding the local obsession with certain aesthetics. Often, it is enough that something looks luxurious, for instance marble-like, but does not have to be the 'real thing'. The marbled tiles, then, tackle the issue of surface-level luxury and the performance of an upper class identity which often functions as a mark to hide the core or the origins of our identity.
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