Warp and woof: BEEAH and Barjeel Art Foundation weave textile art exhibition
- 15 Nov 2024
Muhammad Yusuf, Features Writer
In collaboration with Barjeel Art Foundation, BEEAH has launched a new art exhibition titled ‘Women’s Work: From Craft to Fine Art, Reclaiming Arab Textile Art’ at its enchanting headquarters in Sharjah (Nov. 9 - Jan. 16, 2025). It brings together the work of modern and contemporary Arab women artists, exploring the intersection of traditionally accepted female-coded craft practices and contemporary fine art. The works on display are from the Collection of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah, UAE, and the event is free and open to the public. Sharjah-based BEEAH Group advances sustainability agendas for companies, cities and governments.
Curated by the British-Lebanese artist and designer Nour Hage, ‘Women’s Work’ highlights the cultural significance of textiles in the Arab world, which is enshrined in captivating tapestries, embroidery, curtains, mixed media work, and fine paintings. The curation includes the work of artists Safia Farhat (1924, Tunisia), Nazek Hamdy (1926, Egypt), Amina Saoudi (1955, Morocco), Leila Jabre Jureidini (1963, Lebanon), Mahrous Abdou (1963, Egypt), Nadia Mohamed (1963, Egypt), Mona Al Munajjed (1959, Lebanon), Abdul Muttalab Fheima (1947, Libya), Hind Zulfa (1942, Syria), Esther Cécile Bendaoud (1935, Morocco), Stéphanie Saadé (1983, Lebanon), Bouchra Khalili (1975, Morocco), Louay Kayyali (1934, Syria) and Lamis Dachwali (1930, Syria).
Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi, Founder of Barjeel Art Foundation, said: “We are delighted to have a selection of textile works from our collection presented at the BEEAH headquarters under the expert curation of Nour Hage, celebrating the intersection of craft and artistic expression. By foregrounding these pieces, we honour the rich tradition of craftsmanship in the region, while challenging the boundaries of modern art, and inviting new conversations around artisanship and innovation.” Nada Taryam, CEO - Real Estate at BEEAH, said that “in collaboration with the Barjeel Art Foundation and Nour Hage as curator, the Women’s Work exhibition goes beyond a collection of captivating artwork in the landmark setting of the BEEAH headquarters. The exhibition is an experiential and thought-provoking journey for every visitor, narrating the story of different times and diverse places in the Arab world, broadening perspectives and deepening cultural understanding.”
Moving beyond utilitarian function, textiles have historically served as a medium for transmitting knowledge, culture, and identity across generations. The selected artists have reimagined and elevated textile practices, challenging preconceived notions of art, identity, and cultural heritage. “It’s an incredible privilege to tell the story of Arab women’s outsized influence on textile art in the region,” said Hage. “The Barjeel Art Foundation has been incredibly generous in opening up their collection to be mined for these pieces, as have BEEAH in inviting this exhibition into their stunning headquarters, a Zaha Hadid-designed building that is itself a testament to Arab female ingenuity. Throughout the exhibition, we have endeavoured to tell the story of the transition of women’s work from the accepted space of domestic labour to the grand stage of the contemporary art world.
The artists featured in this exhibition have paved the way for a new generation of artists to enter this daunting world with confidence and a sense of rootedness.”
Hage was the inaugural Jameel Fellow at the V&A Museum in 2021-22 and was awarded the Boghossian Foundation Prize in 2014. She graduated from Parsons School of Design (Paris) with a BFA in Fashion Design. Her practice is centred on the exploration of West Asian identities, culture, history and storytelling with a particular focus on the role of women, the supernatural, and mental well-being. She has exhibited at Dr Johnson’s House (London), The Albany/Haramacy Residency (London), Nowhere (NYC), Foundation (digital), Alserkal Avenue (Dubai) and had a solo exhibition at Leighton House (London) in 2023. She is based between London and Dubai.
‘Women’s Work: From Craft to Fine Art, Reclaiming Arab Textile Art’ is part of BEEAH’s ongoing efforts to leverage its headquarters as a dynamic platform for engaging with diverse sectors, industries, and the wider public, inspiring cultural preservation and dialogue. The artworks in the exhibition range from the 1950s to the 2020s and were created by artists from across the Arab world. They are both deeply personal and socially engaged. The artists are not merely preserving tradition, but are actively reshaping it for a contemporary context.
In ‘The Encounter of the First and Last Particles of Dust’, Stephanie Saade explores the notion of displacement. Her memories, linked to the embroidery on her family home’s curtains, intertwine personal stories with Lebanon’s history. In The Weaver, Bouchra Khalili combines cotton and magnetic tape to highlight both weaving and video as techniques for intergenerational transmission of knowledge. The more recent pieces align with the global emergence of an appreciation for textile art, beginning in the late 2010s. The artworks exhibited in ‘Women’s Work’ challenge us to reconsider how we define art. It makes us realise the importance of giving credit to perhaps invisible histories, by spotlighting and honouring them.
In an essay in byarcadia.org, Sara Manente notes that “textile practices have for a long time been considered a relic of women’s past and of their confinement inside domestic spaces, where needlework was mostly a hobby or a source of revenue and self-sustainment ... the artistic value of techniques like knitting, crocheting, and embroidery is finally being recognised. Textile arts have been a way to reconnect with women of the past, to understand and empathise with them.” The BEEAH exhibition, besides underlining the merit of the artists, also underscores the evolution of women’s work.