artist book; drawing

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Object Type: artist book; drawing
Museum number: 2015,6022.1
Title: Object: Ali's Boat 1
Description: Artist book with text and images. Indian ink and charcoal on notebook paper. The Arabic text inscribed in the book was translated by Fergus Reoch and Sadik Alfraji and reads as follows. 1 (seal)صادق Sadik ____________________________________________________ 2 no text ____________________________________________________ 3 إصعد قاربك وارحل، يا علي Get on your boat and leave, Ali ____________________________________________________ 4 خذ نبع الماء يا عليّ Take the water spring, my Ali ____________________________________________________ 5 علي يا حبيبي أنت صنعت قارباَ يحملك إليّ.. فسرقتهُ أنا ليحملني أنا إلى حيث أنت My dear Ali, you have made a boat to carry you to me… I have stolen it to carry me to where you are ____________________________________________________ 6 كنت مثلك يا علي... عندي قارب...كان لونه من ذهب الاحلام وكان مرصعاً باللازورد، اللازورد ياعلي I was like you, Ali… I had a boat… It was the colour of gold in dreams and it was studded with lapis lazuli, with lapis lazuli Ali. ____________________________________________________ 7 لا تضع أحلامك كلها في قارب واحد يا علي Don’t put all your dreams in one boat, Ali ____________________________________________________ 8 إحذر الأفاعي يا علي إحذر الأفاعي يا علي Beware of snakes, Ali Beware of snakes, Ali ____________________________________________________ 9 إبتعد قدر ما تستطيع عن قاربك يا علي... هذا القارب سيقودك إلى وهم خلف وهم خلف ظلمة لا لا تعطيك الخلاص الذي تنشد Stay as far away from your boat as you can, Ali… This boat will lead to delusion after delusion after darkness. No. No It does not give you the redemption that you seek ____________________________________________________ 10 إركب الغيمة لا تخش يا علي Ride the cloud. Do not be afraid, Ali ____________________________________________________ 11 no text ____________________________________________________ 12 ابحث عن غابتك أنت Look for your own forest ____________________________________________________ 13 no text ____________________________________________________ 14 وإسعي and keep going 15 no text ____________________________________________________ 16 إسعى يا علي keep going, Ali ____________________________________________________ 17 no text ____________________________________________________ 18 هل تخاف الأفاعي يا علي Do you fear the snakes, Ali? ____________________________________________________ 19 no text ____________________________________________________ 20 هل حاولت أن تطير Did you try to fly? ____________________________________________________ 21 no text ____________________________________________________ 22 حاول يا علي Try, Ali ____________________________________________________ 23 إغلق عينك يا علي. وسترى Close your eye, Ali. And you’ll see ____________________________________________________ 24 no text ____________________________________________________ 25 إفتح عينك يا عليّ Open your eye, my Ali ____________________________________________________ 26 إحمل جسدك وإحمل القارب والاحلام Carry your body, and carry the boat and the dreams ____________________________________________________ 27 no text ____________________________________________________ 28 no text ____________________________________________________ 29 لا أحد يا عليّ.. سوى الغيوم وقاربك There’s nothing but the clouds and your boat, my Ali ____________________________________________________ 30 no text ____________________________________________________ 31 no text ____________________________________________________ 32 إهجر البيت والأهل يا علي Abandon your home and the family, Ali ____________________________________________________ 33 يا علي ستجد هناك بيت لا يشبه أحلامك Ali, you will find a house there that does not resemble your dreams ____________________________________________________ 34 no text ____________________________________________________ 35 وضع قدمك في قلب الريح Put your foot into the heart of the wind ____________________________________________________ 36 no text ____________________________________________________ 37 في قلب الريح Into the heart of the wind ____________________________________________________ 38 no text ____________________________________________________ 39 قلب الريح ولا تسهوا The heart of the wind And do not forget ____________________________________________________ 40 لا تسهوا عن قاربك يا علي Do not overlook your boat, Ali ____________________________________________________ 41 no text ____________________________________________________ 42 سيكون لك شكل آخر يا علي You will have another form, Ali ____________________________________________________ 43 شكل آخر Another form ____________________________________________________ 44 no text ____________________________________________________ 45 شكل آخر Another form ____________________________________________________ 46 no text ____________________________________________________ 47 شكل يشبه أحلامك A form that resembles your dreams ____________________________________________________ 48 no text ____________________________________________________ 49 ماء وسمك يرقص من حولك... water and fish dance around you… ____________________________________________________ 50 لا سندباد يا علي Not Sinbad, Ali ____________________________________________________ 51 بل أن سندباد مخبوء في قاربك Though Sinbad is hiding in your boat ____________________________________________________ 52 ولا حصان طائر يا علي And not a flying horse, Ali ____________________________________________________ 53 ولعل حصان أبيض ينتظرك بجناحيه وحوافره Though perhaps a white horse is waiting for you, with its wings and hooves ____________________________________________________ 54 قاربك هو بيتك Your boat is your house ____________________________________________________ 55 no text ____________________________________________________ 56 no text ____________________________________________________ 57 قد يخذل القارب صاحبه يا علي فاحذر The boat might fail its master, Ali. So be aware ____________________________________________________ 58 كن مخلصاَ له كي لا يخذلك.. فالقارب يعرف صاحبه Be loyal, so that it will not fail you… The boat knows its master ____________________________________________________ 59 قد يصعد لوحده نحو سماء لا تعرفها It might ascend towards a sky you do not know ____________________________________________________ 60 ربما يدور حولك دون أن تعلم Perhaps it turns around you, without you knowing ____________________________________________________ 61 قد يهرب قاربك الى عالم غريب أسفل شجرة بعيده Your might escape to a strange world beneath a faraway tree ____________________________________________________ 62 no text ____________________________________________________ 63 no text ____________________________________________________ 64 no text ____________________________________________________ 65 no text ____________________________________________________ 66 no text ____________________________________________________ 67 no text ____________________________________________________ 68 no text ____________________________________________________ 69 no text ____________________________________________________ 70 no text ____________________________________________________ 71 هي.. دورة لا تنتهي .. يا علي.. تعود حيث تبدأ It is… a journey that does not finish…Ali…It goes back to where it starts ____________________________________________________ 72 الأنهار توصل إلى البحر يا علي Rivers reach the sea, Ali ____________________________________________________ 73 no text ____________________________________________________ 74 اذهب أحياناُ كثيره مع رسالتك اليتيمه.. أقرأ خطوطها وكلماتها البسيطه متلمساً احلامك ومخاوفك واشياءك هناك... فلا ارى سوى قاربك منقوعاً بالماء والاحلام ....الاحلام يا علي I often set out, with your orphan letter… I read its simple words and lines, touching your dreams and your fears, and your things there… but I only see your boat, soaked with water and dreams … dreams, Ali ____________________________________________________ 75 no text ____________________________________________________ 76 قاربك المنقوع بالماء والأحلام Your boat, soaked with water and dreams ____________________________________________________ 77 لا سبيل غير السفر مع الطير There is no way but to fly with the birds ____________________________________________________ 78 وقد يتماها الطير والقارب The birds and the boat might merge together ____________________________________________________ 79 أو الجلوس في قارب Or sitting in a boat ____________________________________________________ 80 no text ____________________________________________________ 81 لا تفارق قاربك يا علي Do not leave your boat, Ali ____________________________________________________ 82 no text ____________________________________________________ 83 no text ____________________________________________________ 84 no text ____________________________________________________ 85 لا تقعد يا علي Do not sit still, Ali ____________________________________________________ 86 no text ____________________________________________________ 87 ابحر مع الريح يا علي Sail with the wind, Ali ____________________________________________________ 88 انطح القدر يا علي إنطح القدر يا علي Thrust into fate, Ali Thrust into fate, Ali ____________________________________________________ 89 هناك يا علي حيث لا أحد There, Ali Where nobody is ____________________________________________________ 90 إنطح القدر يا علي إنطح القدر يا علي إنطح القدر يا علي إنطح القدر يا علي إنطح القد ر يا علي إنطح القدر يا علي إ نطح القدر يا علي إنطح Thrust into fate, Ali Thrust into fate, Ali, Thrust into fate Ali, Thrust into fate, Ali, Thrust into fa te Ali, Thrust into fate Ali, Thru st into fate, Ali, Thrust ____________________________________________________ 91 لا تنظر للأفاعي وخذ السلالم فقط Don’t look at the snakes. Take only the ladders ____________________________________________________ 92 no text ____________________________________________________ 93 no text ____________________________________________________ 94 لا أحب البكاء يا علي... إمسح هذه الدموع I don’t like crying, Ali… Wipe away these tears ____________________________________________________ 95 سأكون بانتظارك يا علي I will be waiting for you, Ali ____________________________________________________ 96 no text ____________________________________________________ 97 no text ____________________________________________________ 98 سأكون بانتظارك يا علي I will be waiting for you, Ali ____________________________________________________ 99 وسيكون بامكانك أن تنام And you will be able to sleep ____________________________________________________ 100 بانتظارك يا علي Waiting for you, Ali ____________________________________________________ 101 (seal)صادق sadik 2014 Sadik (seal) ____________________________________________________ cv1 no text ____________________________________________________ cv2 no text
Producer name: Made by: Sadik Kwaish Alfraji
School/style: Middle East & North Africa Modern Art
Production date: 2014
Materials: paper
Technique: drawn
Dimensions: Height: 20 centimetres; Width: 16 centimetres (Closed book)
$Inscriptions
Curator's comments: Label text: This artist's book tells the story of a young boy, Ali, wishing to escape the horrors of present-day Iraq. It is inspired by an encounter with his 11 year old nephew who on his departure in 2009, gave him a drawing of a boat, with the words ‘I wish this boat takes me to you.’ The book acts as a diary and merges into the artist’s own predicament as an exile. Alfraji works in a deliberately child-like style, and always in black and white. The text appears as a dialogue between the artist and Ali but is in fact a conversation with himself. The style of the work is made all the more poignant by the clear melancholy present in all of Alfraji’s work. This book forms the basis for a video work.
Location: Not on display
Exhibition history: Exhibited: Artists making books: poetry to politics Gallery 43a, 27 October 2022 to 17 September 2023 2015 11 Jul-4 Nov, London, BM, G34, 'From the figurative to the abstract: modern art of the Arab world'
Subjects: boat/ship; dream/vision; migration
Associated places: Associated with: Iraq
Acquisition name: Purchased from: Ayyam Gallery
Funder name: Funded by: Contemporary and Modern Middle Eastern Art acquisition group (CaMMEA)
Acquisition date: 2015
Department: Middle East
Registration number: 2015,6022.1

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