Jun 13 2024 2 mins
The song is the call, and the land is calling presents the work of Palestinian artist duo Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme. Simultaneously on view across the two institutions – CC and the Glyptotek – the exhibition takes a deep dive into collective memory and the power of cultural expressions. Featuring both immersive video- and sound installations as well as sculptural archival displays, the artists present a body of works that unfold in the slippages between erasures and reappearances, dispossession and resistance, histories of colonialism and attempts at new livelihoods.
On view at CC is a new site-specific iteration of three combined works: the multi-channel sound and video installation May amnesia never kiss us on the mouth: Only sounds that tremble through us, the sculptural installation Where the soil has been disturbed and the textile banner piece Low cloud hum.
Collectively the works draw connections between narratives of struggle and shared dreams of liberation across different lands, histories and political contexts – focusing particularly on the radical and subversive resistance performed through song, dance and bodily movement.
Through poetry and political thinking Abbas and Abou-Rahme explore how stories of collective resistance resonate in human history and contemporary cultures. Often referring to their works as ‘poetics of resistance’, the artists highlight their interest in how communities can mobilise hope and collectively foster new social potentials despite living with the consequences of oppressive political systems.
About Basel Abbas & Ruanne Abou-Rahme
Basel Abbas (b. Nicosia, Cyprus, 1983) and Ruanne Abou-Rahme (b. Boston, USA, 1983) live and work between New York City, USA and Ramallah, Palestine. With backgrounds in sound and experimental film, the artists have developed an internationally renowned body of work that encompasses both video, sound, image, text, and performance practices.
CC \ Glyptoteket
The song is the call, and the land is calling is the second exhibition in the three-year partnership program between CC and the Glyptotek. Titled Hosting Histories: Revisiting Cultural Heritage of the Middle East and Beyond the program revisits the cultural heritage of antiquity and its significance today.