Exhibitions

Gauze offers insight into the multifaceted significance of the material "gauze" within Palestinian collective histories, particularly in the context of the corporeal. The exhibition invites viewers to explore the profound connections between material, the body, the context and the artist’s personal journey as a Gazan native in exile.

The word "gauze" holds a powerful resonance with collective histories, inseparable from the corporeal experience. A material historically used in ancient and modern medicine for bodily envelopment, gauze signals the initiation of the act of repair. Serving as a visual announcement, it bears witness to injuries hidden from view. Known as "شاش" (shash) in Arabic, the English name "Gauze" finds its etymological roots in the city of Gaza, Palestine, where the material has been historically crafted and from where Harb originates.

Harb's early connection with the material dates back to his childhood in Gaza in 2004, where he employed gauze as an artistic medium, akin to canvas. Not originally intended for artistic purposes, gauze transformed into a creative outlet and an instrument of resistance for Harb amid the suffering of his people that characterised his formative years.

Throughout Harb's artistic career, gauze has emerged as a recurrent artistic resource. He utilised it for Burned Bodies, a video installation created during his art studies at Città dell'Altra Economia Roma, in Italy in 2008.

Decades later, Harb revisits gauze as a medium to excavate the untold stories from his city, shedding light on the genocide of his people. Informed by the global dissemination of real-time imagery on social media in 2023, this new body of work reexamines the original site and material, offering a fresh perspective. Harb reflects on his early works with gauze, exploring the transformative power of reflection and imagination in charting an emancipatory future.