Hale Tenger's Beirut and World Cracker at Rizzuto Gallery Palermo

Rizzuto Gallery in Palermo presents two works by Turkish artist Hale Tenger (b. 1960, Izmir): the video 'Beirut' (2005-07) and the sculpture 'World Cracker' (1992). 'Beirut' poetically narrates contemporary life, reflecting on peace that can suddenly turn into political violence and injustice. It focuses on the February 14, 2005 bombing in Beirut that killed 22 people, including former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri. The video installation shows the facade of the St. George Hotel near the attack site, from day to night and before to after the explosion. 'World Cracker' is a 1992 sculpture that critiques economic injustices linked to politics, referencing the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In December 1991, Istanbul was flooded with goods from former Soviet countries, brought by desperate migrants and sold by Russian traders on the streets. The Russian cracker in Tenger's sculpture is one such item given to workers by bankrupt factories instead of wages.