As the upcoming 60th International Art Exhibition at the Venice Biennale unfolds, QM will host a MENA-centric film exhibition, made possible through collaborations with various local and international entities.
Qatar Museums (QM) will host a film exhibition at the Art Capital Partners – Palazzo Franchetti in Venice.
The Your Ghosts are Mine: Expanded Cinemas, Amplified Voices exhibition will feature ten galleries – each journeying visitors through themes such as Arabian deserts being the cradles of civilisation and places of rebirth, ruins and relics of culture, women’s voices in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), borders and demarcations between the permissible and forbidden places as well as exile.
The films will include original documentaries, memoirs and animations – unpacking modernity and tradition as well as spirituality in the MENA region within the postcolonial context.
The multifaceted Your Ghosts are Mine was produced by QM and co-sponsored by the Doha Film Institute (DFI), Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art and the future Art Mill Museum. The Art Capital Partners also collaborated with QM on this project.
The curatorial team involved the expertise of Matthieu Orlean, an artistic associate at the Cinémathèque Française. Qatar’s Majid Al Remaihi, an award-winning filmmaker, and Virgile Alexandre were also part of the curatorial team.
For Orlean, “Cinema is not only the mirror of the political changes: it participates in them, anticipates them, accompanies them, supports them, transforms them in a daring aesthetical approach.”
Immersive experience
Martelli and Perisse said: “The exhibition architecture created by Cookies engages with each of the curatorial themes, offering visitors a diverse and immersive experience.”
They added: “For each room in the exhibition, Cookies designed unique sculptural structures that respond to the technical needs of displaying cinema in an exhibition context. This approach ensures that the exhibition engages with the architecture of the palazzo, facilitating moments of immersion where spectators can fully engage with the carefully curated selection of films from the Doha Film Institute catalogue.”
The advisory committee for Your Ghosts are Mine consisted of Fatma Hassan Al Remaihi, CEO of the DFI, Zeina Arida, Director of Mathaf, and Catherine Grenier, President of the Institut Giacometti.
The Exhibition Manager is Khalifa Al Thani.
‘QM is advancing its key mission’ – Sheikha Al Mayassa Al Thani
The film exhibition is set to coincide with the 60th International Art Exhibition at the Venice Biennale, which will take place from 20 April until 24 November.
Remarking on the anticipated exhibition, Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Chairperson of QM and the DFI, said: “Opening at the same time as the Venice Art Biennale and continuing throughout the presentation of the Venice Film Festival, Your Ghosts are Mine will open the eyes of multitudes of international viewers to the ideas, the feelings, and above all the artistic visions of today’s filmmakers from the Arab world and neighbouring regions.”
She added, “By presenting this exhibition, QM advances its key mission of encouraging understanding across borders through cultural exchange, while the DFI fulfils its mandate to nurture and promote the rising talents of our region.”
For the DFI’s CEO, the exhibition is part of the wider framework of the institute seeking to redress global misconceptions about MENA culture and its stories, as well as nurture the region’s talent.
Beyond bolstering the region’s film industries, QM will also support the Nigeria Pavilion at the Biennale.
