Country | Naima Morelli

Published! Central Asian Perspectives Take Center Stage in Milan on Times of Central Asia

08-05-2025

A pale Milanese dawn draped the city in shifting greys, as visitors crossed the threshold into the space of Fondazione Elpis, a foundation created to promote dialogue with emerging geographies and young artists.

This time, it was Central Asian artists who were in the spotlight, claiming a shared history fractured by Soviet rule and global currents. The show YOU ARE HERE: Central Asia redraws a regional map, allowing artists to reimagine the borders of their belonging beyond nation-states. At the same time, it invites each visitor to relate to the works by locating its place within these stitched, erased, and reconfigured narratives.

I have interviewed curator Dilda Ramazan for Times of Central Asia.

Here is the link to the article

Published! Review of Bagus Pandega and Kei Imazu’s Artificial Green on Artforum

By: Naima Morelli

02-05-2025

English, Indonesia, News, Published, Review

A painted green and blue wall with dripping effects, depicting tropical plants and foliage, intersected by a metal structural frame on the right.

Very proud to have my first review in Artforum. This is a review of the installation Artificial Green by Nature Green 4.0 at the 2024 Bangkok Art Biennale by artists Bagus Pandega and Kei Imazu’s.

The work cyclically generated and erased images of a lush Indonesian rainforest, like Penelope repeatedly weaving and unraveling her shroud.

Here is the link to the review

Published! Interview with Altynai Osmo for Times of Central Asia

By: Naima Morelli

24-04-2025

Central Asia

In the heart of Tribeca in New York, the Sapar Contemporary Art Gallery has launched a new exhibition, Beneath the Earth and Above the Clouds, which brings Central Asian narratives to the forefront.

This dual show – which runs until May 15, 2025 – features Altynai Osmo and Aya Shalkar, two artists who have been devoted to exploring female narratives in the region, and do this through works that are both steeped into tradition, and modern and vibrant at the same time.

I spoke with Altynai Osmo, a multimedia artist from Kyrgyzstan whose work weaves the threads of nomadic heritage with contemporary expression, for The Times of Central Asia.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Gaza’s rescued treasures at the Arab World Institute in Paris for The New Arab

By: Naima Morelli

10-04-2025

Middle East, Published

The Arab World Institute’s exhibition on Gaza’s archaeological treasures offers European visitors a vital glimpse into the history of the Palestinian enclave.

I wrote the piece for The New Arab

Here is the link to the article

Published! Interview with Kazakh-Korean artist Alexander Ugay for Times of Central Asia

By: Naima Morelli

09-04-2025

Central Asia, News, Published

In his new show, More than Dreams, Less than Things, at NIKA Projects in Paris, Ugay looks at the origins of image-making both literally and philosophically. Inspired by Ibn al-Haytham’s Book of Optics, the artist reanimates the ancient camera obscura, letting light seep through the book’s pages to birth abstract images: faded records of a presence.

The exhibition, which opened on March 16, explores the tension between technological progress and the way this can be disrupted by the power of imagination and poetry – eminently human things – by looking at the intersection of photography, technology, and diasporic memory.

I wrote this piece for Times of Central Asia

Here is the link to the article

Published! Mapping Beirut through comics on MEMO

By: Naima Morelli

04-04-2025

Middle East, News, Published, Research

BEYROUTH YA BEYROUTH » / LE JOURNAL BIENTOT DISPONIBLE AU LIBAN Une… | serge darpeix

I wrote for Middle East Monitor an article about “Beyrouth Ya Beyrouth”, a comic book collection in the form of a newspaper created last year by the comic book festival “Rencontres du 9e Art, Festival BD d’Aix” at Aix-en-Provence in the South of France.

The collection sees a group of Lebanese artists sharing different sides of Beirut that are less known to the media. Rather than focusing on the crises and turmoil, they aim to capture the city’s everyday life, emotions and experiences through the medium of comics.

Here is the link to the article

Published! Uzbekistan at the 2025 Venice Biennale at Times of Central Asia

By: Naima Morelli

25-03-2025

Central Asia, Interview, Italy, Published

Is it possible to preserve architectural heritage while working towards sustainability? And what to make of the architectural relics of the past century? Can they somehow take on new meaning rather than remaining a representation of dystopias and utopias of the past?

All these questions and more are addressed by the Uzbekistan Pavilion at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale. Running alternate years with the Art Biennale, this is undoubtedly one of the most important architectural events in the international arena.

I have interviewed Ekaterina Golovatyuk of Studio GRACE, the architectural film that curated the Uzebek Pavillion. The piece is for Times of Central Asia.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Marseille ‘Revenir’ exhibition on MEMO

By: Naima Morelli

11-03-2025

France, News, Review, Visit

Affiche de l'exposition "Revenir" © passeport - photo David Giancatarina, Sfeir-Semler Gallery Hamburg/Beirut, Adagp, Paris, 2024 et © archives famille Ghoussoub Feghali, Collections du Muse national de l'histoire de l'immigration - Établissement public du Palais de la Porte Dorée

As I walked to the museum in the southern French city, some graffiti on a restaurant shutter caught my eye: “If a place attracts you, it’s because there is something waiting for you, and your story there has already been written.”

These words stuck with me as I turned the corner and the incredible MUCEM building stood before me, epic in shape and location, silhouetted against the cloudy sky, seemingly suspended on the sea.

“Revenir” focuses on the idea of home, travel and returning. This is not only the scope of the show, but the wider project of the museum, which is dedicated to Mediterranean cultures, especially to that very specific blend for which this city port is renowned.

Running until 16 March at the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations (MUCEM) in Marseille, the exhibition “Revenir” (“Return”) invites visitors to explore the experiences of returning to one’s homeland.

I wrote about the show for Middle East Monitor.

Here is the link to the review

Published! Q&A with Sara Raza director of CCA Tashkent

By: Naima Morelli

10-03-2025

Central Asia, Interview, News, Published

Sara Raza is a litmus test for the spirit of the times in the shape of an art curator. In simple terms, art crowds can count on her direction for the Tashkent Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA) to bring the most pressing issues in contemporary art to the foreground.

Indeed, the author of the book Punk Orientalism – and the namesake curatorial studio – has been just appointed as Artistic Director and Chief Curatorial Director of the CCA Tashkent, set to open in September 2025.

It’s a strategic move for the Centre, which has aspirations of becoming a global arts and culture hub and is aiming at international artistic and creative exchanges, which include residencies, exhibitions, workshops, and educational programmes, and contributing to Uzbekistan’s cultural ecosystem.

Here is the link to the interview

Published! Simurgh Self-Help by Slavs and Tatars’ on Times of Central Asia

By: Naima Morelli

21-02-2025

Central Asia, English, Interview, Published

The mythological figure of the Simurgh is the focus of Slavs and Tatars’ latest show at the gallery The Third Line in Dubai called “Simurgh Self-Help”.

The show speaks of the importance of reclaiming and reframing cultural memories in a fractured world, and an invitation to think beyond the artificial, top-down confines of nationalism, to find cultural unity.

I have interview Payam, one half of Slav and Tatars, for The Times of Central Asia.

Here is the link to te piece

Published! The Marrakech Art Scene on The New Arab

By: Naima Morelli

14-02-2025

News, North Africa, Published, Reportage, Research

From art fairs to vibrant galleries, Marrakech is becoming a top spot for contemporary African art, bringing together local talent and global influences. I wrote this article on the local art scene for The New Arab.

Here is the link to the article

Published! The contemporary art fair 1/54 Marrakech on MEMO

By: Naima Morelli

06-02-2025

Interview, North Africa, Published, Reportage, Research, Visit

1-54 Marrakech 2025. [Courtesy Mohamed Lakhdar]

Small but well-curated, the 1/54 art fair in Marrakech aims to be the gateway for African art, while fostering the local Moroccan art scene. I have reported on the event for Middle East Monitor.

Here is the link to the article

Naima Morelli

Published! Central Asian Perspectives Take Center Stage in Milan on Times of Central Asia

Published! Review of Bagus Pandega and Kei Imazu’s Artificial Green on Artforum

Published! Interview with Altynai Osmo for Times of Central Asia

Published! Gaza’s rescued treasures at the Arab World Institute in Paris for The New Arab

Published! Interview with Kazakh-Korean artist Alexander Ugay for Times of Central Asia

Published! Mapping Beirut through comics on MEMO

Published! Uzbekistan at the 2025 Venice Biennale at Times of Central Asia

Published! Marseille ‘Revenir’ exhibition on MEMO

Published! Q&A with Sara Raza director of CCA Tashkent

Published! Simurgh Self-Help by Slavs and Tatars’ on Times of Central Asia

Published! The Marrakech Art Scene on The New Arab

Published! The contemporary art fair 1/54 Marrakech on MEMO

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