Nasser Alzayani Wins Richard Mille Art Prize, Explores Memory and Loss
Nasser Alzayani, the inaugural recipient of the Richard Mille Art Prize, delves into themes of memory and loss in his piece titled "Watering the distant, deserting the near." This installation highlights the desiccated Ain Adhari springs in Bahrain, which have suffered from excessive irrigation over the past two decades. Initiated in 2016, Alzayani gathered local narratives, songs, and visuals for the project. The installation includes sand tablets inscribed with verses from Ali Abdulla Khalifa's poem lamenting the springs' disappearance, designed to deteriorate naturally. Alzayani holds an MFA in glass from the Rhode Island School of Design and previously created "Ope, there goes gravity" in 2021, utilizing debris from a demolished Abu Dhabi site. His next exhibition at Warehouse421 will address Bahrain's colonial past through a dual journaling initiative.
Key facts
- Nasser Alzayani won the first Richard Mille Art Prize.
- His installation 'Watering the distant, deserting the near' addresses the dried-up Ain Adhari springs in Bahrain.
- The springs were drained by over-irrigation over the last 20 years.
- Alzayani began the project in 2016 by interviewing locals and collecting songs, poems, and visual materials.
- The work includes sand tablets stenciled with lines from a poem by Ali Abdulla Khalifa.
- Alzayani holds an MFA in glass from the Rhode Island School of Design.
- His 2021 commission for Warehouse421, 'Ope, there goes gravity,' used shards of ceramic pots from a plant market damaged by a controlled demolition in Abu Dhabi.
- An upcoming group exhibition at Warehouse421 will feature a dual journaling project based on a British advisor's diary from Bahrain's colonial period.
Entities
Artists
- Nasser Alzayani
- Ali Abdulla Khalifa
- Shirley Bassey
Institutions
- Richard Mille Art Prize
- Rhode Island School of Design
- Warehouse421
- Louvre Abu Dhabi
Locations
- Bahrain
- Ain Adhari
- Abu Dhabi
- Port Zayed
- London