Katia Kameli
∗1973, France
The work of French-Algerian artist Katia Kameli is closely linked to her own origins and the different cultures that construct her identity. Starting from personal experience, her works explore the “in-between” zones where traditional culture meets contemporary culture, focusing mainly on territories such asAfrica, the Middle East and the Mediterranean. Through photography, film and installation, the artist works as a translator, mixing languages and identities and giving birth to a new hybrid language. The work on view at Pontives, Huppe(2022), is a sound sculpture that is part of a choral sculptural group, produced on the occasion of the exhibition at La Criée Contemporary Art Center, entitled Le Cantique des oiseaux(The Canticle of the Birds). The exhibition takes its title from the most recent translation (edited by Leili Anvar) of the poem by the 12th-century Persian author Farîd-ud Dîn ‘Attâr. The text recounts the journey of thousand birds led by the wisest among them, the hoopoe (hodhod in Persian) in search of Simorgh, a mythological creature of Persian tradition who was said to live at the peak of mount Qaf, the mythical mountain. Along this journey throughseven valleys, which is nothing but a metaphor for life, some birds abandon their companions, and only about 30 reach the end of the journey and ultimately realizethat Simorgh is their own reflection. Kameli translates the words of the poeminto a flock of bird ceramics of different sizes, each characterized by its own melody, which the artist has brought together in a chorus that can symbolize the importance of self-discovery and collective action.
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