Aasiyah (a.s.)

Farwa Moledina (1993 - )

Inkjet Print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag – 308gsm

2023

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  • About the work
    Location
    Country: United Arab Emirates
    City: Abu Dhabi
    Place: British Embassy
    The four prints of the Women of Paradise series celebrate four women at the heart of Islamic culture. In each print, Moledina explores these figures' personal histories and living legacies but also how these individuals have, throughout history, been made into peripheral figures within western religious discussions and throughout Euro-American popular culture more broadly.
    Included in this set of notable women are Maryam, more popularly known as Mary in the Christian tradition, who in Islamic tradition is among the most respected figures in the Quran. Other figures portrayed in this series are Khadijah, the first wife of the Prophet Muhammad, who is often referred to as ‘Mother of the Believers’. Alongside her is Fatimah, daughter of the Prophet Muhammad and of Khadijah and, lastly, Aasiyah, wife of Fir’awn (Pharaoh of the Exodus) and adoptive mother of Prophet Musa (Moses). Each of Moledina’s images is richly layered with patterns and lavish symbolism that speak to the lives of each individual. Displayed singularly or individually, each work and the set as a whole raise important questions about the status of female identity in Islamic culture and about the limits of abstraction within art.
  • About the artist
    Farwa Moledina was born in 1993 and raised in Dubai. She has lived in the UK since 2010. Based in the West Midlands, she works primarily with textile, but also in photography and print. Moledina utilises a wide variety of imagery sourced from art history, Islamic architecture and her local environment to explore her own and others’ Muslim identities. Moledina has exhibited widely within the UK including at Ikon Gallery, the Midlands Art Centre, The Holden Gallery and the New Art Gallery Walsall. Internationally, she has shown in Lahore as part of a collateral exhibition for the Lahore Biennale and at Warehouse421 in Abu Dhabi. In 2023, her work was included in a group show at Arnolfini in Bristol.
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  • Details
    Artist
    Farwa Moledina (1993 - )
    Title
    Aasiyah (a.s.)
    Portfolio Title
    Women of Paradise
    Date
    2023
    Medium
    Inkjet Print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag – 308gsm
    Dimensions
    height: 57.6 cm; width: 44.7 cm; depth: 4.7 cm
    Acquisition
    Purchased from the artist, March 2023
    Provenance
    Purchased from the artist, March 2023
    GAC number
    19143