Layla Nabi | was guckst du | November 26, 2021 – January 14, 2022
Wannsee Contemporary is pleased to present Layla Nabi‘s first solo exhibition – was guckst du. The exhibition is based on new sculptures by Nabi (born 1994 in Berlin, based in Dresden), some of which were recently displayed at Dresden University of Fine Arts (HfBK, 2021).
The colorful and large-scale sculptures hold a unique quality of being amusing and humorous, while also vague and solemn. All of the sculptures included in the exhibition are part of Nabi’s on-going research and interest in finding ways to re-examine and give a fresh look to the mundane environment that shapes our urban lives. The sculptures are sort of replicas that are not faithful to the original objects frequently found in public spaces. Nabi’s source of inspiration and entanglement is with such objects that we tend, for the most part, neither to dwell on their essence, nor on their impact on our immediate environment.
By re-creating these objects as joyful and lustrous, and by alleviating them to singled out art works, Nabi allows us to linger and reflect on the space they might hold in our lives. Imagining the existence of these items detached from their original place is a technique of defamiliarization. Nabi offers us a space to reflect on a range of matters from the functionality to the aesthetics of these devices, while encouraging us to renew our perception of that which is seen as familiar and granted.
*Image credit installation view: Raiko Sánchez