Reconstructing Joy – How Contemporary Art at Nottingham Contemporary Engages and Delights Without the Weight of History
At Nottingham Contemporary, the current exhibitions explore compelling themes that resonate deeply with both cultural identity and community engagement. Hamid Zénati’s Two Steps at a Time highlights his nearly sixty-year career, blending North African modernism, Japanese textile design, and organic forms to reflect his Algerian-German heritage. This synthesis provides a rich exploration of cultural identity and migration. Julian Abraham ‘Togar’s REꓘONCILIATION focuses on participatory art, involving local communities, especially young people, in creating music and sound. This exhibition emphasises collaboration, social interaction, and the significance of public spaces in artistic expression. Claudia MartÃnez Garay’s WAKCHAKUNA / We Who Share Everything and Nothing delves into the socio-political histories and lost narratives of Peru, reanimating historical and archaeological collections. Her work examines the complex relationship with Peru’s past, addressing themes of colonialism, indigenous heritage, and national identity. Together, these exhibitions highlight the dynamic interplay between history, cultural identity, and community in contemporary art.
Hamid Zénati: Two Steps at a Time
Hamid Zénati’s Two Steps at a Time highlights his integration of North African modernism, Japanese textile design, and organic forms, reflecting his Algerian-German heritage. His work spans multiple mediums, including textiles, fashion, ceramics, wearable sculpture, and photography, and demonstrates a self-taught, innovative spirit. The exhibition has received positive critical attention for its comprehensive overview of Zénati’s nearly sixty-year career. Critics have praised his unique blending of various cultural influences and his ability to create a distinct abstract visual language through an inexhaustible wealth of forms, patterns, and colour combinations. The public has responded positively as well, appreciating the diverse presentation of Zénati’s work and the insightful walkthrough events led by art historians and curators.
Julian Abraham ‘Togar’: REꓘONCILIATION
Julian Abraham ‘Togar’s REꓘONCILIATION focuses on creating participatory environments, engaging local communities, particularly young people, in the co-production of music and sound. His work transforms the gallery space into an interactive and dynamic environment, blurring the boundaries between artist and audience and emphasising collaboration, social interaction, and the use of technology in art. The critical response to the exhibition has been positive, with reviewers commending its innovative approach to participatory art and community engagement. The public has also reacted favourably, highlighting the interactive nature of the exhibition and the inclusive, dynamic experience it offers, allowing visitors to actively co-experiment and co-create within the space.
Claudia MartÃnez Garay: WAKCHAKUNA / We Who Share Everything and Nothing
Claudia MartÃnez Garay examines the socio-political histories and lost narratives of Peru, reanimating historical and archaeological collections. Her work, which includes site-specific installations, painting, sculpture, video, and installation, deeply engages with Peruvian heritage, exploring themes of colonialism, indigenous identity, and the complex relationship with Peru’s past. The exhibition has been highly praised by critics for its immersive and thought-provoking exploration of Peruvian culture and history. Public reaction has also been very positive, with visitors commending the engaging and reflective nature of the exhibition, as well as the effective blending of historical and contemporary themes that offer a profound insight into cultural heritage and identity.
These exhibitions encapsulate a metamodern feeling, showcasing a rich interplay of aesthetics and sensibilities that oscillate between post-structural, post-modern, and metamodern approaches. Hamid Zénati’s Two Steps at a Time exemplifies this oscillation through his blend of North African modernism, Japanese textile design, and organic forms. His work reflects a sincere engagement with cultural identity and heritage while also embracing a playful, self-aware integration of traditional and contemporary elements, thus embodying a metamodern synthesis of transcultural fusion.
Julian Abraham ‘Togar’s REꓘONCILIATION further enhances this metamodern mood by creating participatory environments that blur the lines between artist and audience. His use of automated instruments and re-imagined synthesizers fosters a community-centric, collaborative exploration of music and sound, moving beyond the detached critical stance of post-modernism towards a more hopeful, communal interaction. This approach reflects metamodern values of relational aesthetics and the interplay between technology and humanity.
Claudia MartÃnez Garay’s WAKCHAKUNA / We Who Share Everything and Nothing encapsulates the metamodern oscillation through her reanimation of pre-Columbian aesthetics and exploration of Andean heritage. Her work reverently engages with historical narratives while critically examining their contemporary relevance, embodying a dynamic interaction between past and present. This re-contextualization of historical and archaeological collections through a modern lens highlights the metamodern sensibility of combining irony and sincerity, tradition and innovation.
Overall, these exhibitions signify a metamodern aesthetic by navigating the space between modernist ideals and post-modern scepticism, embracing complexity, hybridity, and emotional engagement. They create meaningful forms of cultural expression that resonate with the metamodern ethos of oscillation and synthesis, offering a nuanced exploration of identity, history, and community.
The exhibitions, when taken together, present a fascinating challenge of metamodern transcendence by taking critical theories such as postmodernism and post-structuralism and applying them through a lens of community engagement and meaningful development. This is achieved by adopting a participatory and audience-involved approach, as seen in the works of Hamid Zénati, Julian Abraham ‘Togar’, and Claudia MartÃnez Garay. These artists twist and reshape the norms of ‘deconstruction’ and ‘decolonisation’ prevalent in contemporary social theory, recognising and utilising ‘cultural appropriation’ and the mixing of different ‘cultures of feeling’ to assert a sense of sincerity and meaningful depth.
Hamid Zénati creates a dialogue between diverse cultural influences. This synthesis transcends mere appropriation, aiming instead for a sincere exploration of cultural identity and heritage. Julian Abraham ‘Togar’s “REꓘONCILIATION” embraces community participation, inviting local audiences, especially young people, to co-create music and sound within an interactive environment. This approach reflects a metamodern sensibility by engaging critically with technology and social interaction, transforming the deconstructionist notion of fragmented identities into a cohesive, collaborative experience. Claudia MartÃnez Garay recontextualises historical narratives, blending them with modern themes to create a reflective, immersive experience that challenges traditional views on cultural appropriation.
These exhibitions collectively demonstrate how contemporary social theories of deconstruction and decolonisation can be reshaped to foster sincere and meaningful cultural expressions. By engaging with and involving their audiences, the artists transcend critical theory, embracing a metamodern approach that seeks depth and authenticity in cultural synthesis and community engagement.
The exhibitions at Nottingham Contemporary offer a joyful experience, showcasing the positive qualities of contemporary art in engaging visitors without resorting to lecturing or overwhelming them with technical or academic language. These works can be enjoyed purely for their aesthetic appeal, allowing audiences to immerse themselves in the creative expressions of the artists without the weight of social justice obligations often associated with compensating for past discrimination. Each piece exemplifies a positive response to the world, demonstrating the imaginative potential of art.
Hamid Zénati’s Two Steps at a Time, Julian Abraham ‘Togar’s REꓘONCILIATION, and Claudia MartÃnez Garay’s WAKCHAKUNA / We Who Share Everything and Nothing collectively embody this approach. Zénati’s integration of cultural motifs and innovative styles creates a vibrant, multicultural tapestry that can be appreciated for its visual beauty and cultural depth. Togar’s participatory installations invite viewers to become active co-creators, fostering a sense of community and collaboration that is both engaging and enjoyable. MartÃnez Garay’s reanimation of historical narratives through contemporary art forms offers an immersive experience that connects the past with the present in a reflective yet accessible manner.
These exhibitions align with Hanzi Freinacht’s idea that ‘after the deconstruction must come the reconstruction.’ They present art as a constructive force, moving beyond the critical disassembly of past injustices to build new, inclusive, and positive cultural expressions. By doing so, they highlight how contemporary art can delight and inspire, providing a space for enjoyment and reflection without the necessity of shouldering the burdens of historical rectification. The result is a series of exhibitions that are not only thought-provoking but also uplifting, showcasing the transformative power of art in a way that resonates deeply with a wide audience.
