Mona Hatoum
Mona Hatoum’s installation Cellules consists of eight cage-like structures made from steel rods that are normally used to reinforce concrete. The rigid grids contain fragile, amorphous, deep-red glass shapes that resemble strange creatures or unspecific body parts. The rounded, translucent shapes of the glass contrast with the hard and sharp steel grids. Through this contrast, Hatoum explores the theme of confinement as well as the desire for freedom. The title Cellules has a double meaning—it refers both to spaces of incarceration and to the smallest units of living organisms.
Hatoum grew up in Lebanon. Her experience of resorting to underground shelters during times of conflict and the fear of being trapped under collapsed buildings, has influenced some of her works.
Cellules, 2012-2013, Detail, Mild steel, hand-blown glass in eight parts, variable height x 53.2 x 43.2 cm © Mona Hatoum. Courtesy Galerie Chantal Crousel, Paris, Collection of Jenny Yeh, Winsing Arts Foundation. Photo: Florian Kleinefenn.
Cellules, 2012-2013, Mild steel, hand-blown glass in eight parts, variable height x 53.2 x 43.2 cm, Installation view at Centre Pompidou, Paris © Mona Hatoum. Courtesy Galerie Chantal Crousel, Paris. Collection of Jenny Yeh, Winsing Arts Foundation. Photo: Florian Kleinefenn
