The Momentary presents a solo exhibition of works by Diana Al-Hadid who utilizes a wide range of materials that explore notions of memory, ruin, progress, and globalism. Diana Al-Hadid: Ash in the Trade Winds features 10 wall panels, drawings, and sculptures that were created between 2018 and 2021, highlighting recent developments in Al-Hadid’s signature process of layering pigments onto classical and contemporary materials, including bronze, plaster, fiberglass, and polymer gypsum.

The works in this exhibition portray reimagined elements found within the story of Gradiva, a fictitious female character from Wilhelm Jensen’s novella of the same name. Drawing inspiration from literature, architecture, and art history, Al-Hadid’s work dissolves female forms and landscapes into approximations of their original source. Together, these captivating works encourage slow looking and invite viewers to create their own visual histories.

Diana Al-Hadid was born in Aleppo, Syria in 1981 and currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. Her work is included in collections such as the San Jose Museum of Art, DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and Weatherspoon Art Museum.

Diana Al-Hadid: Ash in the Trade Winds is on view in Gallery 2 at the Momentary.

SUPPORTED BY:

Sarah Simmons

Kate and Greg Schaffer