Rather than a monograph, a drawing of one, Alia Ali presents with this book a multi-graph, a drawing of many. Ali deconstructs artificial binaries to examine inherited political narratives-diaspora, identity, borders-through the lens of photography, language, textile, and architectural installations. A map of patterns emerges, interwoven with artist statements, research images, exchanges with collaborators, and fragments of her journals. Words and images draw us simultaneously into the micro musings of the artist's mind and zoom out to a macro reflection of the global and communal nature of the artist's practice. Ali's multi-graph is a textural experience in which each page is folded upon itself, leaving one wondering at what is invisible in plain sight.
This extraordinary book also impresses with its special form of Japanese binding.
Alia Ali (*1985, Austria) is a Yemeni-Bosnian-American multimedia artist who lives and works in New Orleans, Paris, Marrakech, and Jaipur. Her interdisciplinary works combine photography, textiles, language, and installations to challenge cultural identities and political narratives. Ali's works have been exhibited worldwide and are renowned for their vibrant patterns, profound themes, and innovative artistic approaches that transcend the boundaries between tradition and modernity.