Representation & Misrepresentation

Alwan Center for the Arts
New York, NY

Sept 24 - October 3, 2004

Opening Reception Friday September 24, 7 - 10 PM

'Representation & Misrepresentation' brings together 10 artists from Palestine, the Arab World, Iran and the United States. This exhibition is part of the weekend long Festival of Cultural Resistance which marks the 22nd anniversary of the massacre of Palestinian refugees in the camps of Sabra and Chatila in Lebanon1982. It also marks the fourth anniversary of the current Palestinian Intifada which began in September 2000. 'Representation & Misrepresentation' is a collaborative project between Al Awda and the Culture & Conflict Group.

No other issue has been more reported, interpreted and misrepresented than that of the Palestinian conflict. Yet despite an over saturation of media coverage since the beginning of the current intifada no other conflict, nor its origins, is more obscured or misrepresented. In the current climate of globalization, continued war and occupation in Iraq, and struggles against US dominance in Latin America, Palestine still remains the most contentious issue in terms of accuracy of information. Debated, derided and consigned to the status of 'Terrorists' in the west, the Palestinian people have long been more than adept at representing themselves, their culture, identity and struggle for self determination, yet little of this is seen or heard through mainstream channels of communication. The artists in this exhibition call attention not only to the conditions that the Palestinian people face in their existence and struggles, but also to the importance of visual communication as a means to address the current imbalance in the mainstream media. The exhibition makes no claims at impacting this imbalance in real terms, but instead highlights the potential of visual art to both serve as an affirmation of identity and culture and to challenge the complacency of accepted notions of 'fact' or 'truth'. The artists in this exhibition not only stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, but raise important questions on the role of the artist, and of culture in general, in challenging assumptions often taken for granted in mainstream discourse.

Al Awda, the Palestinian Right of Return Coalition works to provide solidarity and support at a grassroots level for the over 4 million Palestinian Refugees.

The Culture & Conflict Group was formed in 1998 in order to explore the intersection between art and politics in contemporary society and to challenge the assumption that art is neutral in any given context. The group has organized a number of exhibitions including 'British Architecture in Ireland', shown at the Puffin Room in New York in 1998. In 2000 'Ambiguous Authority' was held at Beacon Street Gallery in Chicago. 'Unlimited Partnerships' was held at CEPA Gallery in Buffalo, NY also in 2000. 'Settlement', featuring artists from Palestine, Ireland and the US was shown at Gallery 400, UIC, Chicago in 2002. In 2003 it toured to Derry, Ireland, where it was exhibited as part of the commemorations for Bloody Sunday. In the same year the exhibition traveled to Galway Arts Center, Galway, Ireland.

The Culture & Conflict Group is primarily based in New York and Dublin, Ireland.