Kader Attia Biography

Kader Attia spent much of his childhood between Algeria and France and lived in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Venezuela as a young adult. With such a background, a key component of his work is the question of cultural conflict. Approaching his work with a multicultural lens, Kader Attia is known for exploring the legacy of colonialism: the ongoing impact of Western culture and politics on the Middle East and North Africa, as well as the impact within Western countries themselves.

Working across a range of media, materials, scales and symbols, Attia’s many individual series at first appear self-contained. However, he continually returns to the overarching themes of the impact of politics, culture, and cultural displacement, maintaining a sustained critical look at the complexities of modern life.

Using unconventional materials including couscous and plastic bags, Kader Attia explores how non-Western people construct and shape their identities in the face of, in the knowledge of, or in the shadow of Western cultural hegemony. A notable aspect of his practice—one that enables an exploration of this dichotomy—is his focus on architecture: exploring the disparities and similarities between East and West in order to highlight and rectify the social and political divides between the two cultures.

Kader Attia studied at the École Supérieure des Arts Appliqués Duperré, Paris; the Escola Massana, Centre d’Art i Disseny, Barcelona; and the École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs, Paris. His work has been included in major international art exhibitions including the 12^th Gwangju Biennale (2018); 12^th Shanghai Biennale (2018); 13^th Lyon Biennale (2015); dOCUMENTA 13, Kassel (2012); and the 54^th Venice Biennale (2011), among others.

In March 2021, Kader Attia was announced as the curator of the 12th Berlin Biennale.

Kader Attia Solo Exhibitions include:

Kader Attia: Remembering the Future, Kunsthaus Zürich (2020); Mirrors of Emotion, Lehmann Maupin, New York (2019); The Museum of Emotion, Hayward Gallery, London (2019); Kader Attia, Museo de Arte de São Paulo, Brazil (2018); Scars Remind Us that Our Past is Real, Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona (2018); The Field of Emotion, The Power Plant, Toronto (2018); Kader Attia, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Sydney (2017); Prix Marcel Duchamp, Centre Pompidou, Paris (2016).

Kader Attia Group Exhibitions include:

When Home Won’t Let You Stay: Migration through Contemporary Art, Minneapolis Institute of Arts (2020); Clapping with Stones: Art and Acts of Resistance, Rubin Museum, New York (2019); Trans-Justice: [email protected], Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei (2018); The Fabric of Felicity, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow (2018); How to Live Together, Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna (2017); But a Storm is Blowing from Paradise, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (2016).

Georgia Messervy | Ocula | 2021