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Bamiyan: (The Heart That Has No Love/pain/generosity Is Not A Heart)
Bamiyan: (The Heart That Has No Love/pain/generosity Is Not A Heart)
Bamiyan: (The Heart That Has No Love/pain/generosity Is Not A Heart)
8000
Toronto, Ontario www.rom.on.ca
M5S 2C6
NEWS RELEASE
Bamiyan
Curated by Haema Sivanesan, Executive Director of SAVAC, and produced by Vancouver-based media
artist Jayce Salloum and Afghan-Hazara artist Khadim Ali, Bamiyan (the heart that has no
love/pain/generosity is not a heart) records the misery of current conditions in Bamiyan and reflects on an
area of conflict where a budding Afghan modernity has been observed.
Haema Sivanesan states, “ “...heart...” represents an important artistic collaboration examining the impact of a
particular instance of ‘cultural terrorism’ in the contemporary context of war. The artists go beyond the front
line of the conflict in Afghanistan to explore the lived experiences of the Hazara community, a persecuted
ethnic minority who predominate in the province of Bamiyan. The installation takes the form of a personal
archive, juxtaposing miniature paintings and photographs alongside ambient and documentary video. The
installation unsettles the critical contexts and art-historical categories of each artist’s work to engage a timely
cross-cultural dialogue.”
The main bodies were fashioned directly from the sandstone cliffs, but details were modeled in mud mixed with
straw, coated with stucco. The lower parts of the statues' arms were constructed from the same mud-straw mix
while supported on wooden armatures. It is believed that the upper parts of their faces were made from great
wooden masks or casts.
Bamiyan comprises a collection of photographs, miniature paintings, and videos which examine the aftereffects
of the destruction of the immense Buddhas. The installation expresses a sense of the complexity of the current
situation in Afghanistan, and takes up themes of the possibility of resistance, hope and beauty in the context of
ongoing conflict.
In conceptualizing this project, Salloum and Ali set out to research and document conditions in Bamiyan in the
aftermath of the destruction, and to examine UNESCO’s effort in conserving the Buddhist caves. In
undertaking this study, the artists also studied the situation of the Hazara people following decades of war and
The artists will be available for media interviews from 24 March 2010. To arrange an interview with the artists
or with Haema Sivanesan, please contact: Srimoyee Mitra, Programs Coordinator, SAVAC, at:
srimoyee@savac.net or 416.542.1661
Other information:
Admission to Bamiyan (the heart that has no love/pain/generosity is not a heart) is included in general Museum
admission: Adults: $22; Students and Seniors with ID: $19; Children (4 to 14 years) $15; Children 3 &
under are free. Half Price Friday Nights, presented by Sun Life Financial, take place from 4:30 pm to 9:30
pm. To book a group of ten or more and for more information on private guided tours or group menu,
please call ROM Group Sales at 416.586.5889 or email groupsales@rom.on.ca.
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