Renowned Lebanese artist and architect Nadim Karam has unveiled his latest exhibition, Vie Sur Vie, at ESA Business School’s Henry et Nadège Obegi Gardens. Here, we learn more about the works and the inspiration behind them.
Karam invites visitors to reflect on the inter-connection between two sculpture series: To Be or Not to Be and Urban Bouquets, in which the artist explores existentialism through his distinctive brand of humanism intertwined with absurdity.
The existential enquiry into being has persistently haunted Karam’s mindscape and permeated his body of work; it has underpinned the major themes he has explored, such as the nature of thought, migration, war, intense emotions and ultimately the paradox of life versus death.
Karam explores existentialism through his distinctive brand of humanism infused with absurdity. The materiality and compositions of the To Be or Not to Be works hint at the fact that amid the existential struggle lies an opportunity to derive meaning from the very forces that unsettle us, and the Bouquets provide a much-needed respite from the weight of realities.
Although created in response to geo-historical contexts, Karam’s production traverses multiple media, temporalities, and spaces, defying understanding within a singular temporality or space. It encompasses instead a multitude of inner geographies and life experiences, woven like communicating vessels, challenging nature, and opposing it with life and survival: vie/survie.
In Vie Sur Vie, Karam offers visitors the chance to glimpse into his creative processes and navigate a path through life and survival, where each encounter becomes a portal.
“The blast at the port of Beirut shook the nation and left a huge hole in my being. Since then, I have been working on closing the chasm; sculpting my thoughts, my work and my life into a spontaneous choreography,” says Karam.
He adds: “These works have lived the essence of Beirut. They need our utmost attention to hear and see beyond their physical presence into the depths of their substance. They seek existence in its rawness, devoid of filters. They emanate from the human condition in times of genocide, war, agony, sadness and confusion.”
Vie Sur Vie by Nadim Karam will be on view until July 26, 2024. It is open for visitors on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, from 9 am to 7 pm. Guided tours available by appointment.
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If you liked reading this, check out our article on KDSHA, a unique exhibition of 17 art installations at Villa Chamoun, Hasroun.
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