FEATURED ARTIST Go<strong>in</strong>g Home Ascend<strong>in</strong>g to Heaven by NUJOOM ALGHANEM 78 <strong>April</strong> <strong>2023</strong> www.magzoid.com
Travers<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> artistic landscape: A journey of discovery and <strong>in</strong>novation - Exclusive to <strong>Magzoid</strong> Nujoom Alghanem, an Emirati artist, poet, and multi-award-w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g film director, was born <strong>in</strong> Dubai <strong>in</strong> 1962. She has published eight poetry collections and produced approximately twenty films, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g short fiction, short documentaries, art films, and seven featurelength documentaries, which have garnered local, regional, and <strong>in</strong>ternational recognition. Nujoom is <strong>the</strong> founder of Nahar Productions, a film production company based <strong>in</strong> Dubai, and also works as a professional tra<strong>in</strong>er and mentor <strong>in</strong> filmmak<strong>in</strong>g, art, and creative writ<strong>in</strong>g. Her poems have been translated <strong>in</strong>to various languages, such as Spanish, German, French, Turkish, Italian, Macedonian, Greek, and Urdu. Nujoom earned her bachelor’s degree <strong>in</strong> Video Production from Ohio University <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> United States <strong>in</strong> 1996 and completed her MA <strong>in</strong> Media Production from <strong>the</strong> School of Film, Griffith University <strong>in</strong> Australia <strong>in</strong> 1999. Although Nujoom started practic<strong>in</strong>g draw<strong>in</strong>g dur<strong>in</strong>g high school, she only considered it a hobby until she met <strong>the</strong> late artist Hassan Sharif <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> mid-1980s. She <strong>the</strong>n began produc<strong>in</strong>g some pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs and sculptural works at Al-Muaraija Studio <strong>in</strong> Sharjah, where she presented <strong>the</strong>m to <strong>the</strong> public for <strong>the</strong> first time. In January 1985, Nujoom founded <strong>the</strong> Aqwas group with artist Hassan Sharif, Youssef Khalil, <strong>the</strong> late Sudanese storyteller, and Khalid Albudoor, <strong>the</strong> poet, researcher, and translator. She also participated with <strong>the</strong> Emirates F<strong>in</strong>e Arts Society <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> fourth annual exhibition at <strong>the</strong> Expo Center <strong>in</strong> Sharjah on March 28, 1985. She was among five artists who participated <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Rock, Paper, Scissors: Positions <strong>in</strong> Play exhibition at <strong>the</strong> Venice Biennale’s UAE National Pavilion, curated by Hammad Nasar, <strong>in</strong> 2017. Dur<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> exhibition, she presented her work, “Between Heaven and Earth – The body I borrowed,” which <strong>in</strong>tegrated sound and images for <strong>the</strong> first time. In 2018, she collaborated with British s<strong>in</strong>ger and songwriter Sami Yusuf on a jo<strong>in</strong>t work called The Room of Mysteries for Sharjah’s 21st annual Islamic Art Festival, which had <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>me “Horizon.” The exhibition took place at <strong>the</strong> Sharjah Art Museum. Also <strong>in</strong> 2018, as part of <strong>the</strong> “U.A.E. Unlimited” platform, she mentored six emerg<strong>in</strong>g artists for <strong>the</strong> Tashweesh: Noise of Materials fifth session exhibition and displayed her <strong>in</strong>stallation work, “Around Us,” as a guest artist at <strong>the</strong> Maraya Art Center <strong>in</strong> Sharjah. The exhibition was curated by Laura Metzler. In 2019, she represented <strong>the</strong> UAE as <strong>the</strong> solo artist at <strong>the</strong> Venice Biennale <strong>in</strong> Italy, showcas<strong>in</strong>g her site-specific film, Passage, which was cowritten, designed, and supervised by curators Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath. She held a solo exhibition titled Malamih at <strong>the</strong> Maraya Art Center <strong>in</strong> Sharjah <strong>in</strong> 2021, curated by Dr. N<strong>in</strong>a Heydemann. The exhibition featured artwork from three floors, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs, ceramic sculptures, <strong>in</strong>stallations, and video art, all shown for <strong>the</strong> first time. - feature@magzoid.com www.magzoid.com <strong>April</strong> <strong>2023</strong> 79