Hiwa K Survey Exhibition at Jameel Arts Centre Explores Displacement

Jameel Arts Centre in Dubai presents 'Do you remember what you are burning?', a survey exhibition of Iraqi Kurdish artist Hiwa K. The show gathers installations, sculptures, photographs, and films that address belonging and displacement. Hiwa K's work draws on his experiences of exile during the Gulf War (1990–91) and his participation in Iraq's pro-democracy uprisings of the Arab Spring (2010–13). Born in 1975, he lives and works in Sulaymaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan. His practice involves spontaneous and staged collaborations with protestors, metal casters, and philosophers, positioning himself as activist, bandleader, or cook. He embraces self-education and calls himself an 'extellectual.' The exhibition traces connections between migration, geopolitics, and armed conflict. It is a three-venue collaboration with Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin, and The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery, Toronto. Hiwa K has exhibited at Museum Abteiberg (2021), Kunsthalle Mannheim (2019), S.M.A.K. Museum (2018), New Museum (2018), and KW Institute (2017). He participated in the 56th Venice Biennale (2015), documenta 14 (2017), and MoMA PS1 (2019). He won the 2019 Hector Prize, and in 2016 the Arnold Bode Prize and Schering Stiftung Award.