The Block Museum presented an exhibition in 2017 of newly commissioned work by the internationally acclaimed French-Algerian artist Kader Attia (b. 1970), based in part on the artist’s research in the collections of Northwestern University’s Herskovits Library of African Studies and interviews with university faculty across disciplines. Conceived as an installation, the exhibition featured collage, sculpture, and an extended film-essay. Taken as a whole, the works expand on Attia’s long-term exploration of trauma and repair, both of the body and of society, and probe the legacies of colonialism, slavery, and xenophobia in our time.
Kader Attia grew up moving between Algeria and the suburbs of Paris, and uses this experience of living as a part of two cultures as a starting point to develop a dynamic practice that confronts cultural differences. His debut solo exhibition was held in 1996 in the Republic of Congo, and since then his artistic career has gained major international recognition.
