Mona Hatoum / Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (n.b.k.)

Mona Hatoum‘s solo exhibition at Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (n.b.k.) is part of a large-scale survey of her work at three institutions in Berlin. The other two shows take place at Kindl – Center for Contemporary Art, and Georg Kolbe Museum. The exhibition at n.b.k. “focuses on Hatoum’s dealings with the physical and psychological implications of structural repression through both domestic scenes as well as global scenarios. Her works address experiences of uprootedness – whether as a dissociative moment, trauma, or empowerment. Her ambiguous treatment of notions of home, gender roles and human vulnerability is a compelling artistic contribution to today’s pressing issues.”

The exhibition Mona Hatoum at Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (n.b.k.) is curated by Marius Babias and runs until November 13, 2022.

Mona Hatoum / Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (n.b.k.). Berlin (Germany), September 14, 2022.

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Exhibition text:

With the exhibition Mona Hatoum, three Berlin institutions present the multifaceted work of Mona Hatoum (b. 1952 in Beirut, lives in London) in the first large-scale survey of her work in Berlin. The three-part exhibition opens in September at Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (15.9.2022 – 13.11.2022), Georg Kolbe Museum (15.9.2022 – 8.1.2023) and KINDL – Centre for Contemporary Art (18.9.2022 – 14.5.2023). 

Mona Hatoum is considered one of the most important and influential artists of her generation. Her performances, videos, photographs, sculptures, installations and works on paper deal with issues of displacement, marginalisation, exclusion and state control – themes she examines against the backdrop of both her own biography and current societal developments. The exhibition project, including an accompanying programme and publication, brings together key works by Hatoum from the performance and video work of the 1980s to varied productions from the last two decades as well as new, site-specific sculptures and installations.

The exhibition at n.b.k. focuses on Hatoum’s dealings with the physical and psychological implications of structural repression through both domestic scenes as well as global scenarios. Her works address experiences of uprootedness – whether as a dissociative moment, trauma, or empowerment. Her ambiguous treatment of notions of home, gender roles and human vulnerability is a compelling artistic contribution to today’s pressing issues. 

Mona Hatoum lives and works in London and since her DAAD scholarship in 2003/04 has kept a second home in Berlin. The artist was born in Beirut in 1952 to Palestinian parents. While on a brief visit to London in 1975, civil war broke out in Lebanon and prevented her from returning home. 

Mona Hatoum’s work has been presented in solo exhibitions at prestigious institutions worldwide, including: Magasin III Museum for Contemporary Art, Stockholm (2022); IVAM – Institut Valencià d‘Art Modern, Spain (2021); Pulitzer Arts Foundation, St. Louis (2018); Menil Collection, Houston (2017); Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art (2017); Centre Pompidou, Paris / Tate Modern, London / Nykytaiteen Museo Kiasma, Helsinki (2015–2016); Mathaf: Arab Museum of Contemporary Art, Doha, Qatar (2014); Beirut Art Center (2010); Rennie Museum, Vancouver (2009); Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney (2005). Hatoum participated in documenta 14 and documenta 11 (2017 and 2002); and in the biennials of Moscow (2013), Liverpool (2012), Istanbul (2011 and 1995) and Venice (2005 and 1995), among others.

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