Hassan Sharif, Lead No. 2, 2014 (detail). Mixed media. 25 1/2 x 13 x 2 3/4 in (64.8 x 33 x 7 cm)
Hassan Sharif’s Objects are closely connected to his own body and push notions of social exchange. First conceptualized in the 1980s, these works are anchored in the process of weaving, which is, per Sharif, “a very simple handicraft that is at once repetitive and non-repetitive.” Responding to the landscape of material culture in the UAE, which has undergone rapid socio-economic changes since its independence in 1971, Sharif’s Objects are created from locally-sourced consumer products. Inspired by indigenous forms of carpet weaving as well as the process of dough kneading that was integral to his father’s work as a baker, these works recontextualize traditional processes of assembly. In a 2013 interview, Sharif explained, “[I] like to relate my work to handicraft. But I am not interested in saying that my mother was doing it and that’s why I do it … My handicraft-ness is that I’m doing it for now. It is in the present tense.” In this way, Sharif’s Objects transform and synthesize contemporary materials, questioning notions of authorship and labor, permanence and social stability.