Live Auction 17150Middle Eastern Modern & Contemporary Art
Amer Shomali (Palestinian, b. 1981)
Lot 74

Amer Shomali (Palestinian, b. 1981)

Sawad (from the Black Hole series)

Closed23 March 2019

Price Realised

USD 7,500

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Amer Shomali (Palestinian, b. 1981)
Sawad (from the Black Hole series)
shredded bank notes laid down within a metal satellite dish
41 1/3 in x 37 3/8 in. (105 x 95cm.)
Executed in 2017

Specialist note

'In the aftermath of the Gulf War of 1991, as the Iraqi state collapsed, so did the Iraqi Dinar depreciate in value. (From 1 IQD = 3. USD down to 1 USD = 4000 IQD). Within just a few days, over half a million dollars were shredded and scattered to the wind, reduced to a mere 50 USD. The state and its currency were decimated and eroded, leaving behind black scars and black holes that swallowed the lives and dreams of entire nations. These black holes are from which sprung ISIS and invaded us, which perpetuated this cycle of violence that feeds off of greed, suffering, and despair. Only art may one day restore a damaged, void currency to its former value and luster.’
-AMER SHOMALI