🌟 Unveiling Mona Hatoum's World: Artistic Journey From Displacement to Triumph 🌍
🌟 Unveiling Mona Hatoum's World: Artistic Journey From Displacement to Triumph 🌍
💬 "Raw & Real: GenZ Conversations with Roy
In this episode Roy discusses Mona Hatoum. He is a student journalist with us on a placement organised by the Oxford University Career Services. This article was edited using You.com.
🎧 listen to Roy's backstory here - she discusses her motivation & research as well.
Roy also wrote a short 2 min read article about Mona with a summary inforgraphic.
During the first 23 years of her life, Mona Hatoum had no say in where she lived; it was the wars that chose for her. She was born in 1952 in Beirut, Lebanon, to exiled Palestinian parents who had survived the 1948 Nakba, a catastrophic event that forced 700,000 people to flee their homes and prevented them from ever returning. In an interview with Bomb magazine, Hatoum revealed that her family, like other Palestinians, intentionally refrained from assimilating into Lebanese society. As British citizens, they lived in a country that wasn't their own, facing a deep sense of displacement.
Hatoum attended Beirut University College from 1970 to 1972, where she pursued graphic design. Following her graduation, she joined an advertising agency. However, during a business trip to London in 1975, war once again intervened in Hatoum's life. The outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War prevented her from returning to Beirut, where her family and friends still resided. Thus, Hatoum was forced into exile, experiencing what she called "another kind of dislocation" that compounded her family's existing sense of displacement. Despite these challenges, she made the decision to continue her art studies in London, first at the Byam Shaw School of Art and later at the Slade School of Art from 1979 to 1981.
In the early 1980s, while still a student, Hatoum's artwork revolved around themes of displacement, resistance, and provocation. Throughout the decade, she participated in various artist residencies in Britain and North America, showcasing her work in museums, galleries, and outdoor public spaces. However, since the late 1980s, Hatoum has primarily focused on creating large installations and sculptures using diverse materials. Although she currently operates out of two studios in East London, her most impactful work is often produced in different locations, where she can interact with new people and materials.
Hatoum's art is deeply connected to contemporary political movements, such as the struggle for justice faced by black individuals, as well as the feminist movement. For instance, her sculpture "Hot Spot" (2013), which refers to a war zone, features a globe with red neon lights marking every continent, symbolizing the prevalence of conflicts worldwide. Throughout her career, Hatoum has received numerous accolades and prizes, including the Praemium Imperiale in 2019, the 10th Hiroshima Art Prize in 2017, and the Joan Miró Prize in 2011.
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