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Dress
ثوب

Digital print on Fabric 2019

130 cm x 220cm

372 interactive QR codes. Each code leads to a different link, such as an article, picture, video art, keywords, symbols, and artistic experiments and sketches...

Dress by Syrian Digital Artist Sulafa Hijazi

''In this interactive work by Sulafa Hijazi, we are presented with 372 versions of Quick Response (QR) codes. Together, they form a decorative mosaic not dissimilar to those seen in traditional embroidery styles of the Levant – in particular, Palestine. 

On one hand, this style of traditional embroidery is loaded with political and historical significance: through its ability to preserve cultural memory and heritage, it has become an act of resistance. On the other, this particular style of embroidery has become one of the most popular local industries and commercial products; both made and designed by hand or manufactured by digitally-programmed machines. 

A digital dress, like a traditional dress, is a variable product. Where physical material can wear out over time, so too digital links might be discontinued due to the disappearance of their pages on the Internet, or a change in their content. Women used to spend months weaving one single dress and embroidering it. During that period of time, they chatted and exchanged stories. With the passing of time, these kinds of gatherings started to vanish because of the accelerating rhythm of life, the shortage of time, and replacing many handicrafts with technical alternatives. 

Dress by Sulafa Hijazi 2019

Within Dress, viewers can scan each of the codes with their smartphone. Each code leads to a different link, such as an article, picture, video, or artistic experiments and sketches. These feature digital or keywords and symbols, or even personal features. Together, these various links create a mental picture that brings together the many different signifiers represented by traditional Levantine embroidery: women’s collective narratives and their social and regional connotations, as well as QR codes as a global visual language with different modern interpretations. It is within this space that Hijazi seeks to examine the intersection of individual and collective, local and international identities.''

>>Excerpt from Atassi Foundation '' Personal Revolution'' catalog 2019.

Atassi Foundation ''Personal Revolution''

Group exhibition, Dubai UAE, 2019.

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