Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future

As a committed artist keenly aware of contemporary societal issues, a native of Gabes in Tunisia, Gnaoui has diversified his activities by developing other forms of visuality, such as social visuality, bypassing traditional forms which manipulate the earth, in order to question the potential of the material and its symbolism, therefore, lending his work a political angle. The history of art and contemporary art sometimes manages to create connections and links between fragments of civilization and life which do not only produce new outlooks, but often succeed in shedding light on certain realities which go unnoticed. In this respect, Gnaoui is not interested solely in the narratives of the victors, the ones we learn in history lessons, but also in those which pass by word of mouth, from memory to memory, from grandparents to grandchildren. These narratives are not composed only of words, but may at times take on aesthetic and traditional forms, or assume manifestations of the immaterial cultural heritage, and the same applies to style, décors, and stylistic ornamentation that we find in embroidery, ceramic decoration and ornamental models. The exhibition <em>Essaïda-Carthage</em> might be a result of this kind of narrative, or rather of its de-construction, thanks to which it permits these different narratives to collide, complement one another and sometimes to contradict each other.
<div class="mceTemp">Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/broken 02, 2020. Screen-print and red brick dust on paper, 57h x 77w cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/it’s you (Detail), 2020. Bricks, cement, round bars, 86h x 36,5w x 24,5d cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/it’s you (Side perspective), 2020. Bricks, cement, round bars, 86h x 36,5w x 24,5d cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/it’s you (Backside), 2020. Bricks, cement, round bars, 86h x 36,5w x 24,5d cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/sparrow 01, 2020. Round-bars of anticipated reinforcement collected from roofs, brass plated, 47 Round bar, Variable dimension. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/Ro 01, 2020. Corrugated iron sheets, dismantled from homes and brass-plated, 180h x 140w cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/G.L 01, 2020. Studs collected from construction sites brass-plated, 27 stud, Variable dimension. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/G.L 01, 2020. Studs collected from construction sites brass-plated, 27 stud, Variable dimension. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/G.L 01 (Detail), 2020. Studs collected from construction sites brass-plated, 27 stud, Variable dimension. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/hidden time 02, 2020. Screen-print and walls dust on paper, 57h x 77w cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/current red, 2020. Screen-print and red brick dust on fabric, 210h x 168w cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/P.B 01, 2020. Bricks, cement, round bars and printing on concrete, 236,5h x 27,5w x 22d cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/P.B 01 (Backside), 2020. Bricks, cement, round bars and printing on concrete, 236,5h x 27,5w x 22d cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/between two (Diptych), 2020. Bricks, cement and iron construction props, 374h 46w x 24,5d cm & 374h 40,5w x 24,5d cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Malek Gnaoui, SC20/between two (Diptych), 2020. Bricks, cement and iron construction props, 374h 46w x 24,5d cm & 374h 40,5w x 24,5d cm. From Essaïda-Carthage series. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard

<figcaption> Installation view Malek Gnaoui, Essaida Carthage: Between the Past and the Future. Courtesy of Selma Feriani Gallery and the artist. Photo © Pol Guillard