English | Naima Morelli

Published! Etel Adnan on Middle East Monitor

08-12-2021

Lebanese artist Etel Adnan in her home and studio, Paris. Photo: Stefan Ruiz

Sometimes you get the chance to delve deeper into the work of great artists only when they pass away and images of their art starts popping up here and there. This was the case for me with the ouvre of Lebanese artist Etel Adnan. I encountered her work upon her passing, and was mesmerized by it.

I quickly learned she had a life like no others, and at this point I couldn’t help myself writing about it. And I did, for Middle East Monitor. It goes without saying, when you write about art which deeply resonates with you, it’s really a blessing. The pen is aligned with the heart.

Here is the link to the piece

Published! Interview with Libyan artist Shefa Salem on MEMO

By: Naima Morelli

24-11-2021

English, Interview, Libya, News, Published, Research

In the show “I am Libya”, painter Shefa Salem presents outstanding canvases, demonstrating that the public is eager to learn about the ancient history of Libya

What does it mean to be Libyan? How to reconstruct a sense of belonging for the country and its people, starting from the deepest roots of Libyan culture, while preserving diversity?

These are the questions that artist, Shefa Salem, is grappling with for her first solo show I am Libya, which took place a few weeks ago in the Barah Arts and Culture Centre in Benghazi and will travel to Tripoli’s old city at the beginning of December.

I have interviewed the artist for Middle East Monitor.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! The Balinese art scene on Plural Art Mag

By: Naima Morelli

16-11-2021

English, Indonesia, Interview, Published, Research

The Singaporean art magazine Plural has just published my latest piece called “Is there a silver lining to the lack of tourism for the Balinese art scene?”

Here I’m interviewing the directors of three different art spaces, Cush Cush Gallery, Kayu, Ketemu and V-Room, to garner their experience with the pandemic shifts in the art scene, and how this is affecting artists and art spaces alike.

Here is the link to the article

Published! Lebanese Feminist comic book on Middle East Eye

By: Naima Morelli

04-11-2021

English, Interview, Middle East, News, Published, Research

My fifth piece for Middle East Eye is about a Lebanese comic book which tells forgotten stories of country’s feminist struggle. Called ‘Where to, Marie?’, this comic book distils a century of overlooked feminist battles through the stories of five fictional characters. I have interviewed the authors.

Here is the link to the piece

Published! Interview with Haffendi Anuar on Plural

By: Naima Morelli

21-09-2021

English, Interview, Malaysia, Published

The show Rintagan (Resistance) at Richard Koh Fine Art presents works that don’t come from the mind, but rather from a physical involvement with painting materials. They were first inspired by the virtual realm: “I took pictures from Instagram, and then cropped some details,” explains Haffendi. “So it’s going from the virtual, to the IRL, then – being this an online show – to the virtual again.”

My interview with Malaysian artist Haffendi Anuar has been published on Plural Art Mag.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Interview with collector Christoph Bendick

By: Naima Morelli

30-08-2021

Cambodia, Collection, English, Interview, Published

A collection can represent many different things; it can be a statement, contribution, research, even a love story. In the case of retired German doctor, Christoph Bendick, who has worked in Phnom Penh for 25 years, it’s the story of an encounter with a country whose painful recent history is interlaced with the resilience and strength of its people.

I have interviewed the collector for the Singapore-based magazine Plural.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Interview with Turconi and Radice on Global Comment

By: Naima Morelli

04-07-2021

English, Interview, Italy, Published, Reportage

A couple of months ago I have interviewed for Global Comment two of my favourite graphic novel authors, the creative couple Teresa Radice and Stefano Turconi. The interview has just been published; we delved into the creative process behind their most interesting work.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Interview with Andonowati on Larry’s List

By: Naima Morelli

01-07-2021

English, Indonesia, Interview, Published

Andonowati at home with a work by Tisna Sanjaya in the background. Courtesy of Andonowati.

It was an honour and a privilege to start my collaboration with Larry’s List with this interview with one of the people I admire and respect the most in the art world: Andonowati.

She is not only a extremely savvy collector with a heightened sensitivity for art, but also an accomplished mathematician, a collector, a gallerist, a business person, an art initiator, and entrepreneur and also an incredibly compassionate and kind human.

I first met her through my research on Bandung-based artist Eddy Susanto and learned about her gallery and foundation Lawangwangi Creative Space in Bandung. In 2010, Andonowati launched the Bandung Contemporary Art Award (BaCAA) — one of the most prestigious art awards in Southeast Asia, which I took part of as a judge in 2019.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! 5 emerging Libyan artists to watch on MEE

By: Naima Morelli

23-06-2021

English, Libya, North Africa, Published, Research

It has been a few months now that I have been working on two articles about Libyan contemporary art for the webmagazine Middle East Eye.

The first one of the two just came out. Here we look at the younger talents in the country and in the diaspora, Shefa Salem, Tewa Barnosa, Mohamed Abumeis, Malak El Ghuel and Faiza Ramadan, with the observation from gallerist and expert Najlaa Elageli from Noon Arts.

Here is the link to the piece

Published! Interview with Ruangsak Anuwatwimon and Loredana Pazzini-Paracciani on Plural Art Mag

By: Naima Morelli

08-06-2021

English, Interview, Published, Research, Thailand

The drill is simple, yet it’s one that we can hardly keep in mind. Don’t fool with Mother Nature. And take responsibility for your behaviour towards all species. This is what the pandemic is teaching us, and what Thai artist Ruangsak Anuwatwimon has been speaking about through more than a decade of highly impactful, heartbreaking artworks.

I have interviewed the artist and the curator Loredana Pazzini-Paracciani for the show Reincarnations III – Ecologies of Life is presently showing at Warin Lab Contemporary, Bangkok. The piece is on Plural Art Mag.

Here is the link to the article

Published! Interview with Mooza Almatrooshi on MEMO

By: Naima Morelli

26-05-2021

English, Interview, Middle East, Published

“The magical realism that resonates with me the most is the religious mythology that is born out of the Arabian Peninsula,” she tells me. “Until recently, there were minimal efforts to unearth all the erasure of pre-Islamic mythologies and histories in the region. I became interested in all the negative spaces that were vacant and allowed for a re-imagined social landscape to form.”

The webmagazine Middle East Monitor has just published my interview with Emirati artist Mooza Almatrooshi.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Justin Lee and the Teng collection at TPM Singapore

By: Naima Morelli

16-03-2021

Collection, English, Interview, Singapore

The Singapore-based webmagazine Plural Art Mag has just published an interview with artist Justin Lee and Teng Jee Hum, one half of the Teng Collection, together with June Ong.

It was beautiful to learn how their synergies came together to create a one-of-a-kind show at The Private Museum in Singapore.

Here is the link to the piece

Naima Morelli

Published! Etel Adnan on Middle East Monitor

Published! Interview with Libyan artist Shefa Salem on MEMO

Published! The Balinese art scene on Plural Art Mag

Published! Lebanese Feminist comic book on Middle East Eye

Published! Interview with Haffendi Anuar on Plural

Published! Interview with collector Christoph Bendick

Published! Interview with Turconi and Radice on Global Comment

Published! Interview with Andonowati on Larry’s List

Published! 5 emerging Libyan artists to watch on MEE

Published! Interview with Ruangsak Anuwatwimon and Loredana Pazzini-Paracciani on Plural Art Mag

Published! Interview with Mooza Almatrooshi on MEMO

Published! Justin Lee and the Teng collection at TPM Singapore

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