Arab Futurism
Exibited at:
ARS Electronica 2024
UDK Rundgang 2024
Lange nacht der Wissenschaften 2023
Design and Computation Open Studio 2023
In a moment in time where futures are distributed more unevenly than ever and narratives are hijacked by the western gaze, Arab Futurism has been emerging as “a question and a movement that interrogates historical narratives; a reflection on what is, was and could be.” (Majali, S., 2015). Situated within this framework, this project emerged from my personal experience exploring Image AI models in November 2023.
For this project, I mapped out themes like modernity, tradition, dislocation and diaspora, placelessness and territory, and forms of fragmented identity and their relation to geopolitical issues in the MENA region.
The map can be decoded using images generated using AI . Three different artifacts are the tools to do so with the sun being the main subject, which moves through time and place, witnessing everything. In this it also reflects the inescapable Western/colonial lens. The two towers control the flow and freedom of the imagery, allowing users to tweak a selected area.
Users can explore fluid time-land-word-scapes which move forward by reproduction and re-contextualization. Between un you certain often apocalyptic and imginary symbols of the presents and past. For me it was an outlet in trying to grapple with the fleeting Arab reality which has paralysed collective imagination.
The notion of decolonized Arab Futurisms is just at its very beginning, with many interpretations and imaginations rooted in Orientalism. But trying to create a singular Arab futurist aesthetic also comes with complications, as the notion of a singular arab future is problematic. It assumes a singular arab world in the future, which is neither possible nor desirable and reinforces homogeneity.
This project was developed in 2023 during my studies at the M.A Design and Computation at UdK and TU Berlin. For further info check: Documentation
Arab Futurism Map
Selected Video Works
الخيال النابت (Budding Imagination), 2024