Leviathan

Shezad Dawood’s exhibition in Venice is a reflection on where we could be if a deeper understanding of trauma and climate erosion is not found. #BiennaleArte2017

An exhibition of a new and ambitious body of work by artist Shezad Dawood opened across two sites in Venice to coincide with the 57th Art Biennale. The show marks the launch of Leviathan, a ten-part film cycle conceived and directed by Dawood that will unfold over the next three years.

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Shezad Dawood, Where are we now?, installation view, Venice, 2017. Resin and polychromatic paint, 140×100×80cm. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan - Human & Marine Ecology.

Shezad Dawood, Where are we now?, installation view, Venice, 2017. Resin and polychromatic paint, 140×100×80cm. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology

Shezad Dawood, Where are we now?, installation view, Venice, 2017. Resin and polychromatic paint, 140×100×80cm. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology

Shezad Dawood, Labanof Cycle, 2017. Mixed media on Fortuny textile, variable dimension. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology

Shezad Dawood, Labanof Cycle, 2017. Mixed media on Fortuny textile, variable dimension. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology

Shezad Dawood, Labanof Cycle, 2017. Mixed media on Fortuny textile, variable dimension. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology

The first two episodes of the film are presented alongside a new series of textile and sculptural works in the newly-restored Palazzina Canonica, the former headquarters of the Institute of Marine Sciences in Venice, which is opening to the public for the first time since the 1970’s. The two-part exhibition also features a site-specific intervention in the historic Fortuny factory on the island of Giudecca. Taking a global and collective approach, Leviathan is a reflection on where we could be if a deeper understanding of trauma and climate erosion is not found, looking at what is not only a humanitarian crisis, but a wider crisis within our biosphere.

Shezad Dawood, <i>Labanof Cycle</i>, 2017. Mixed media on Fortuny textile, variable dimension. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology — Shezad Dawood, *Labanof Cycle*, 2017. Mixed media on Fortuny textile, variable dimension. Courtesy of the artist and Leviathan – Human & Marine Ecology

until 24 September 2017
Shezad Dawood. Leviathan
curated by Alfredo Cramerotti
Palazzina Canonica
Riva dei Sette Martiri, 1364
Fortuny
Giudecca, 805
Venice

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