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Ears That Won't Obey The Eyes - الاذان التي لا تطيع العيون (2026)
This work takes the form of three gelatin “rugs” mixed with thermochromic red pigment, which responds to heat and changes color. Rooted in the artist’s childhood in post-2003 Iraq, the work approaches memory as a fluid terrain marked by rupture. Recollection merges with dream and distortion, sustained less by factual accuracy than by intensity. The recurring red—at once alluring and unsettling—evokes blood and its symbolic charge, alongside fragments of childhood: chewing gum distributed by American soldiers and the soft, sour-sweet taste of fruit snacks.
Gelatin is a key medium for the artist due to its inherent resemblance to the human body in its wobbliness. It is often associated with childhood: playful, colorful, and entertaining. At the same time, its origin in animal remains introduces a more complex dimension, embodying a transformation from one body to another.