But a Storm Is Blowing from Paradise: Contemporary Art of the Middle East and North Africa

But a Storm Is Blowing from Paradise: Contemporary Art of the Middle East and North Africa at the Galleria d’Arte Moderna Milano (GAM) marks the final exhibition of the Guggenheim UBS MAP Global Art Initiative. Organized by Sara Raza, Guggenheim UBS MAP Curator, Middle East and North Africa, in collaboration with Paola Zatti, Chief Curator, and Omar Cucciniello, Curator, Galleria d’Arte Moderna, But a Storm Is Blowing from Paradise features a diverse range of artistic voices and critical concerns from a rapidly evolving region and its international diaspora.

The exhibition offers a cross-circulation of ideas rooted in science, mathematics, and philosophy. Many of the artworks featured in this exhibition use geometry as a metaphor to measure both physical and conceptual space, and create a dialogue between shape and form, symbol and abstraction, and past and present. The exhibition also considers architecture as a tool for evoking both colonial history and the implications of globalization and gentrification. This new installation at GAM converses with the building’s own architectural heritage and raises urgent issues of migration and displacement in areas around the world, including Italy.

The presentation at GAM features the works of the following artists: Lida Abdul, Abbas Akhavan, Kader Attia, Ergin Çavuşoğlu, Ali Cherri, Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige, Rokni Haerizadeh, Susan Hefuna, Iman Issa, Gülsün Karamustafa, Hassan Khan, and Ahmed Mater.