The Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem ,2011
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Exhibited : Goodman Gallery, Cape Town, Remembrance, 11 August to 15 September 2012.
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Notes : In 2012, twin brothers Hasan and Husain Essop, both graduates of the Michaelis School of Fine Art, University of Cape Town, exhibited photographs of religious sites photographed in Germany, Holland, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Senegal. Entitled Remembrance, the exhibition included this lot portraying the Dome of the Rock, an Islamic shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. This work bears out the dominant themes of their exhibition: religious faith and historical memory. Although grounded in documentary description – their series included photographs of sites inaccessible to non-believers – Remembrance included many scenes in which one or both of the brothers appear in the frame. Sometimes they are shown praying, at other times simply witnessing (as in this lot), and in one photograph (Guantanamo, Cape Town, South Africa, 2010) enacting outrage at the persecution of Muslims. This stunning architectural photograph subtly affirms the legitimate and playful presence of the artists as they journey the world as artists and observant Muslims. In a country where black and white race politics tend to dominate social discourse, the Essops’ work broadens the debate around identity. They are eloquent champions of South Africa’s overlooked Islamic traditions, which arrived in the country from across the Indian Ocean.
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