Naima Morelli

Archive
Reportage

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.”

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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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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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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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Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha [Naima Morelli]

With shows that range from political stances to introspective research, Doha’s Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art proves itself to be one of the most authoritative voices for Arab narratives and the Global South in art.

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Rashed AlShashai, Brand 16, December 2023.

My piece on the light art festival Noor Riyadh has just been published on Al-Monitor.

“Standing in the middle of the King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) in Riyadh, a swarm of drones creates delicate constellations on the horizon. A virtuoso is playing the piano on a stage, complementing the 3,000-drone performance conceived by Studio Drift — an artist duo formed by Dutch artists Lonneke Gordijn and Ralph Nauta — called ‘Desert Swarm’.”

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What is the role of art in times of conflict? I wrote a piece about it for Middle East Monitor, centered on the art light festival, Manar Abu Dhabi, curated by Reem Fadda and Alia Zaal Lootah from 15 November 2023. The festival runs to 30 January 2024.

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My latest story: “Contemporary Libyan art is looking back at its recent and ancient history”, has just been published on the beautiful Hadara Magazine.

I spoke with curator Najlaa Elageli, artists Tewa Barnosa, Shefa Salem and many others.

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Starting this year, Abu Dhabi is building a contemporary art scene tending to the local community, positioning itself as the main taste-maker in the discourse on the Global South in the Middle East.

I wrote a piece based on my latest trip to Abu Dhabi last month for Middle East Monitor.

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The exhibition “Hijrah: In the Footsteps of the Prophet” and the documentary “In the Footsteps of the Beloved” are embracing historical and scientific evidence, signalling a change in Saudi Arabia. I wrote about it for Middle East Monitor.

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How a burgeoning Myanmar art scene came to sudden unrest

I wrote once again on the Myanmar art scene for the webmagazine Southeastasia Globe. It’s my first collaboration with them, and it was great to put together a piece which included a number of interviews to artists and other figures in the art world such as Chaw Ei Thein, Louis Ho, Moe Satt, Bart Was Not Here, Nathalie Johnston, Ilaria Benini and Richie Nath.

Most of them had to flee the country, but they were able gave me a picture of the developments of the art scene over the last few years, and how these were abruptly stopped by the recent military coup.

Here is the link to the piece

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