Naima Morelli

I have been interested in Libyan art, culture, and literature – as well as its relationship with its Italian colonial past – for a few years now. And every time I look at this country through a different facet, there is so much to discover.

This time I looked at the erasure of the colonial architectural heritage in Benghazi and Tripoli, gathering different viewpoints from Libyans, and their memories attached to these buildings.

I wrote the story for Al-Jazeera, with the title “Cultural treasure or painful reminder? Libya’s colonial architecture.”

Here is the link to the article

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My latest piece for the Times of Central Asia is entitled “Almaty’s Aspan Gallery Champions Central Asian Art at Home and Abroad.” For this article, I have interview Aspan Gallery’s director Meruyert Kaliyeva.

Here is the link to the interview

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Moroccan artist Bouchra Khalili

In her work, currently on show both in Athens and at the Venice Biennale, Moroccan Artist Bouchra Khalili highlights the power of storytelling for the disenfranchised subjects of history.

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The Kazakh pavilion “Jerūiyq: Journey Beyond the Horizon” at the 60th International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale, from April 20 to November 24, represents a major milestone in changing perceptions of Kazakh art.

Staged in the Naval Historical Museum, the exhibition reinterprets the ancient legend of Jerūiyq, drawing inspiration from Kazakh myths and the visionary journey of the 15th-century philosopher Asan Kaigy.

I have interviewed the Pavillion’s curator Anvar Musrepov for The Times of Central Asia.

Here is the link to the interview

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Aside from big names such as Marina Abramović, the Balkan region is little known globally, making it ripe for collectors.

I have interviewed some of these artists, collectors and galleries for the Financial Times.

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I have interview artist Maria Madeira and reviewed “Kiss and Don’t Tell,” Timor-Leste’s inaugural pavilion at the Venice Biennale for Plural Art Mag.

The show amalgamates Timorese traditions, personal narratives of displacement, and universal struggles for identity.

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Una visitatrice di Art Basel Hong Kong

The Italian newspaper Il manifesto has just published two pieces of mine. One is an article reflecting back on the art week and the art marketin Hong Kong, the second is an interview with artist Kingsley Ng who did a commission for the façade of the Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong.

Here is the link to the article

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It’s always good to be published on paper! My latest piece for the literary magazine Mekong Review is a piece on contemporary art in Bali beyond tourism, featuring Satya Cipta, Marco Cassani, Citra Sasmita, CushCush Gallery and more.

Get a copy of the magazine here

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The "South West Bank" show at Palazzo Mora [Naima Morelli]

My first report from Venice. Besides the controversy around the closed Israeli Pavilion, in this article for Middle East Monitor I look at three shows representing different facets of Palestine at the 2024 Venice Biennale

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Malaysian-Palestinian artist Mandy El-Sayegh .[Photo Abtin Eshraghi. Courtesy of the artist and Lawrie Shabibi]

Middle East Monitor has just published my latest interview with Malaysian-Palestinian artist Mandy El-Sayegh.

Based on assemblage and cultural hybridity, the artist’s work uses artifacts from contemporary culture to speak of the current political climate.

Here is the link to the interview

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Art installation at the Desert X AlUla 2024 exhibition in Saudi Arabia

Over the past three years, there has been a shift in perception around the Saudi Arabian art scene, and at this year’s Desert X AlUla, artists benefitted from freer expression.

I have review the art festival for the German webmagazine Qantara.

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Sparrow on the Sea | M+

A new byline and – most importantly – some news from the Hong Kong Art Week. I’m writing for Italian newspaper Il Sole 24Ore about a new commission by artist Yang Fudong, who will screen new work on the façade of the M+ museum.

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