Farah Al Qasimi, Living Room Vape 2016. Tate. © Farah Al Qasimi.
Farah Al Qasimi builds a world in which images transcend borders and decorative interiors to tell tales of identity, colonialism and taste
Al Qasimi’s photographs can be disorienting at first glance. Faces and gestures are often obscured, in scenes alive with vivid colours and gentle moments of intimacy. Taken in New York City and Abu Dhabi, her images of cross-cultural life navigate the connections between colonial history, contemporary identity, and consumer culture. Playfully overlapping narratives from past and present, Al Qasimi explains, ’the photographs have a confusing sense of geography that indicates that you are in a lot of complex places… whether they’re immigrant communities in the U.S. or signifiers of colonial influence in West Asia.’
The artworks shown here offer glimpses into private moments in the homes and workplaces of Al Qasimi’s family and friends, detailing local communities and small businesses in New York and Abu Dhabi. The images explore the enactment of gender roles in society, as well as the enduring legacy of British and Portuguese colonial influence in the United Arab Emirates. Al Qasimi also captures the dizzying effects of digital consumer culture through saturated colours and shimmering textures. Multiple forms of image-making layer upon each other, extending here to the vinyl wallpapers which animate the photography and video work.
By blurring visual cultures, geographic references and societal norms, Al Qasimi questions our understanding of place and familiarity in an increasingly interconnected and hybrid global society.
Research supported by Hyundai Tate Research Centre: Transnational in partnership with Hyundai Motor.
Farah Al Qasimi, Um Al Naar (Mother of Fire) 2019
Set in the United Arab Emirates and inspired by the film genre of horror-comedy, Um Al Naar (Mother of Fire), playfully engages with colonial legacies and gendered expressions of identity. The work is presented as an episode of a fictional reality TV show starring a jinn (a spirit from Islamic religious culture, originating in pre-Islamic traditions) called Um Al Naar. She offers a critical perspective on colonial legacies and gender divisions in the Persian Gulf, blending popular spiritual beliefs with personal reflections. The artist has said that the jinn embodies ‘hysteria, curiosity, spirituality – a desire to be expressive and untethered.’
Gallery label, September 2024
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artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Farah Al Qasimi, Blanket Shop 2019
S Folding Blanket connects with other works such as Blanket Shop, the print references the material translations bound up with the movement of peoples. Al Qasimi isolates and highlights the beauty of seemingly inconspicuous moments amidst the visual noise of the city. She creates feelings of in-betweenness and disorientation, as geographic references and the boundaries between public and private are intentionally blurred.
Gallery label, September 2024
2/8
artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Farah Al Qasimi, After Dinner 2018
This is one of a group of photographs in Tate’s collection by Farah al Qasimi that present interiors and scenes of striking colours, shimmering textures and graphic textiles. They were taken in the United Arab Emirates and the United States, countries between which the artist lives and works, playfully engaging with cultural signifiers, gendered expressions of identity and colonial legacies in the Middle East. Each photograph exists in an edition of five with two artist’s proofs.
3/8
artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Farah Al Qasimi, Bedroom (Baba) 2018
This is one of a group of photographs in Tate’s collection by Farah al Qasimi that present interiors and scenes of striking colours, shimmering textures and graphic textiles. They were taken in the United Arab Emirates and the United States, countries between which the artist lives and works, playfully engaging with cultural signifiers, gendered expressions of identity and colonial legacies in the Middle East. Each photograph exists in an edition of five with two artist’s proofs.
4/8
artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Farah Al Qasimi, S Folding Blanket 2016
In Blanket Shop, a shop owner in New York City displays a selection of bright, floral blankets. Blanket Shop is part of a series titled Back and Forth Disco that captures details of local communities and small businesses. Connecting with other works such as S Folding Blanket, the print references the material translations bound up with the movement of peoples. Fabrics, materials and textures obscure the location of the image. Al Qasimi isolates and highlights the beauty of seemingly inconspicuous moments amidst the visual noise of the city. She creates feelings of in-betweenness and disorientation, as geographic references and the boundaries between public and private are intentionally blurred.
Gallery label, September 2024
5/8
artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Farah Al Qasimi, Living Room Vape 2016
The subjects in Living Room Vape are somewhat camouflaged. One sits with their head in a cloud of vapour, another stands by the edge of the frame turned away from the camera. Exactly whose living room we are in is unclear. Al Qasimi’s work seems to resist the confines of any one style or place. Richly detailed Persian textiles adorn the space, alongside porcelain vases and what appears to be a European landscape painting. Here, baroque extravagance meets photo-editorial glamour. But to Al Qasimi, the setting represents years of transcultural exchanges that have been appropriated into Gulf standards of taste.
Gallery label, September 2024
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artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Farah Al Qasimi, Noora’s Room 2020
This is one of a group of photographs in Tate’s collection by Farah al Qasimi that present interiors and scenes of striking colours, shimmering textures and graphic textiles. They were taken in the United Arab Emirates and the United States, countries between which the artist lives and works, playfully engaging with cultural signifiers, gendered expressions of identity and colonial legacies in the Middle East. Each photograph exists in an edition of five with two artist’s proofs.
7/8
artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Farah Al Qasimi, Woman in Leopard Print 2019
This is one of a group of photographs in Tate’s collection by Farah al Qasimi that present interiors and scenes of striking colours, shimmering textures and graphic textiles. They were taken in the United Arab Emirates and the United States, countries between which the artist lives and works, playfully engaging with cultural signifiers, gendered expressions of identity and colonial legacies in the Middle East. Each photograph exists in an edition of five with two artist’s proofs.
8/8
artworks in Farah Al Qasimi
Art in this room
Farah Al Qasimi
Um Al Naar (Mother of Fire)
2019
Farah Al Qasimi
Blanket Shop
2019
Farah Al Qasimi
After Dinner
2018
Farah Al Qasimi
Bedroom (Baba)
2018
Farah Al Qasimi
S Folding Blanket
2016
Farah Al Qasimi
Living Room Vape
2016
Farah Al Qasimi
Noora’s Room
2020
Farah Al Qasimi
Woman in Leopard Print
2019