Opening Reception for Jonah Bokaer: About An Arabesque

signs and symbols is pleased to present About An Arabesque, the first New York solo exhibition by visual artist and choreographer Jonah Bokaer. The exhibition marks a moment in which the interplay of disciplines in Bokaer’s practice can be perceived and encountered within a gallery setting. Through their confrontation of stereotypes and iconoclasm, the featured works explore the complexities at large in Western representation and identification of individuals in the Middle East and North Africa. The arabesque as a visual motif and building block of western dancing — along with the orientalism implied — provides a visual portal into the complexities of this genre, across disciplines. The exhibition features an array of works developed by Bokaer during his awarded residency at the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation in Captiva, Florida (2019). Works include ten lithographs and seriographs with multiple color separations and choreographed overlays of drawing, created with master printer Patrick Miko / Long Road Projects. The exhibition also presents two video works, and a brute color image-transfer installation onto wood. On March 6th, during New York’s Armory Week, Bokaer debuts The Genie, a performance that deconstructs the representation of men within the Middle East and North Africa through the emblematic image of a genie. Bokaer’s extensive travels to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Jerusalem, Tunisia, and Pakistan form the basis of the imagery exhibited.

Start Date

February 13, 2020

End Date

February 13, 2020

Hours

06:00 PM - 08:00 PM

Address

102 Forsyth Street

Event Type

Public

More Information

www.signsandsymbols.art/

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