By Dominique Resendez
How does one return to land that no longer exists? How does one traverse terrain that they have not stepped foot on for years, or never had access to their entire life? How does one superimpose freedom over occupation, communicate a shared language between death and rebirth? Memory and imagination work hand in hand to undertake these challenges. Memory can preserve and imagination can transcend, creating innovative spaces within vacuums, bridges between realities, presence from absence.
In Of Land and Language, presented by Round Weather, artist Manar Harb explores imagined spaces through oil paint, acrylic, and canvas. The exhibition contains abstract works in conversation with land, language, Harb’s Palestinian heritage, and the spiritual world – a blend of what she remembers existing and what she dreams can be.
“Submerged” (2020)
Maps serve as one of many inspirations for Harb, who seeks to explore the language of the land in much of her exhibition. What can the land communicate to us if we care to listen? In “Forest,” the lush greens conjure fertility and growth, and the encroaching vibrant red-golds conjure fire. Though fire can be destruction, it can also be self-preservation, a source of necessary replenishment for the forest. Just as Harb at times repurposes abandoned works by painting her intuitive visions over them, or uses a childhood photograph of a place she can no longer visit as a jumping off point to reimagine herself navigating a spiritual world, opportunities for rebirth abound if one can read the signs.
“Forest” (2020)
Referring to the versatility of abstract art, Harb pointed out that many of her paintings “might look good in a certain perspective, but you can flip them, and you can experience them from another perspective.” The language of each painting is flexible and dynamic, ripe with meaning, intent on communicating life at any angle or slant. Within these pieces, boundaries are suggestions, water can be mountains, sun can be fire can be land, and the physical and spiritual realms are one and the same.
Of Land and Language seeks those with the patience to parse. “This shape here is actually a character in the Arabic language. You wouldn’t necessarily know unless I tell you,” Harb said, gesturing to a small section in one of her paintings. The landscapes contain hidden letters and symbols only visible to those who wish to read the land and grapple with its meaning.
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