Dawood is interested in the idea of advaita, or non-binary thinking. Thinking through where the body and fabric become architecture, and where architectural space is always a stage in waiting for human performativity, Dawood’s new commission draws on the legacy of Bangladeshi Modernist architect Muzharul Islam (1923 –2012)to create an adaptable stage set that is activated through performance.
Dawood’s interior functions somewhere between architecture and tapestry. In turn, costumes by Priya Ahluwalia become an extension of the architectural and fabric elements of the setting, so that geometric lines continue across dancers and ripple as they move within the space, choreographed by Adrienne Hart. A new score by patten layers sounds, examining the influence of Bengali polymath Rabindranath Tagore on Muzharul Islam, but also how Tagore informed the later more spiritual work of Alice Coltrane.
Referencing Islam’s approach to non-dualism, the project extends this fluidity to the space of the fair and enacts a series of dynamic collaborations akin to Islam who regularly collaborated with artists, poets and singers.
Presented by Jhaveri Contemporary and Timothy Taylor with principal support from Bagri Founda
Costume: Priya Ahluwalia / Ahluwalia Studio
Score: patten
Choreography: Adrienne Hart / Neon Dance
Dancers: Pepa Ubera and Deveraj Thimmaiah
Shezad Dawood’s (born 1974, London; lives and works in London) recent solo exhibitions include: Leviathan, Bluecoat Liverpool (2019) Leviathan, Mostyn, Wales (2018); Leviathan, Fondazione Querini Stampalia, Venice (2017); Timothy Taylor, London (2016); Pioneer Works, Brooklyn (2015); Fig.2 at the ICA studio, London (2015); Parasol Unit, London and OCAT Xi’an, China (2014), Modern Art Oxford (2012). And group exhibitions include: Sharjah Biennale SB14 (2019); Gwangju Biennial (2018); Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, Delhi (2018).