Bouchra Khalili's Films Explore Revolutionary Histories Across Multiple Exhibitions
Bouchra Khalili's work engages with historical accounts of anti-imperialist resistance, utilizing film and installation to highlight liberation movements in North Africa and the Middle East. Her notable projects encompass The Mapping Journey Project (2008–11), Garden Conversation (2014), The Speeches Series (2012–13), Twenty-Two Hours (2018), The Tempest Society (2017), The Magic Lantern (2020–22), Foreign Office (2015), and The Circle (2023). She often features nonprofessional performers and emphasizes oral storytelling. Currently, her exhibitions include Bouchra Khalili: Between Circles and Constellations at Sharjah Art Foundation (7 September - 1 December), Lanternists and Typographers at EMST, Athens (until 10 November), and The Mapping Journey Project at the 60th Venice Biennale (until 24 November).
Key facts
- Bouchra Khalili addresses histories of emancipation in North Africa and the Middle East.
- Her work began around the 2010–12 Arab uprisings, countering 'Facebook Revolution' narratives.
- Garden Conversation (2014) imagines a meeting between Al Khattabi and Che Guevara in Melilla.
- Foreign Office (2015) focuses on Algiers as a hub for liberation movements from 1962 to 1972.
- The Mapping Journey Project (2008–11) documents migrant journeys into Europe.
- The Magic Lantern (2020–22) references Carole Roussopoulos's film about Black September in 1970.
- Twenty-Two Hours (2018) explores Jean Genet's 1970 visit to America with the Black Panthers.
- Multiple exhibitions are currently showing her work in Sharjah, Athens, and Venice.
Entities
Artists
- Bouchra Khalili
- Al Khattabi
- Che Guevara
- Carole Roussopoulos
- Jean Genet
- Mahmoud Hamchari
- Angela Davis
- Bobby Seale
- Ericka Huggins
- Douglas Miranda
- Aimé Césaire
- Malcolm X
- Frantz Fanon
- Amílcar Cabral
- Mahmoud Darwish
- Édouard Glissant
- Patrick Chamoiseau
- Nelson Mandela
- Eldridge Cleaver
- Kathleen Cleaver
- Maximilien Robespierre
- Jean-Paul Marat
- Étienne-Gaspard Robert
- Thomas J. Lax
- Pier Paolo Pasolini
- Jean-Luc Godard
- Stephanie Bailey
Institutions
- Sharjah Art Foundation
- EMST / National Museum of Contemporary Art, Athens
- Venice Biennale
- Creative Time Summit
- Black Panther Party
- African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde
- Algerian National Liberation Front
- Palestine Liberation Organization
- Mouvement des Travailleurs Arabes
- Al-Assifa
- Al Halaka
- United Nations
- ArtReview
Locations
- North Africa
- Middle East
- Morocco
- Melilla
- Spain
- Cairo
- Egypt
- Algiers
- Algeria
- France
- Paris
- Marseille
- Casablanca
- Ramallah
- East Jerusalem
- Palestine
- Israel
- Lebanon
- Shatila
- Amman
- Jordan
- United States
- America
- Hong Kong
- Switzerland
- Cuba
- Guinea
- Cape Verde
- Syria
- Iraq
- Munich
- Germany
- Athens
- Greece
- Venice
- Italy
- Sharjah
- United Arab Emirates