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M+, Hong Kong. Gift of an anonymous donor, 2018, © Nalini Malani
On View
Mediatheque
Nalini Malani 納里尼．馬拉尼
Medeamaterial 美狄亞質材
1994
Nalini Malani’s Medeamaterial documents the artist’s collaboration with actor and director Alaknanda Samarth to recast the Greek myth of Medea as a commentary on contemporary political and religious conflict. In this hybrid installation and theatre performance, Samarth (as Medea) delivers an impressionistic script that draws on German playwright Heiner Müller’s retelling of the myth. The video’s sets and environments vary widely: some display Malani’s large paintings as colourful backdrops, while others are abstract spaces with dim lighting and sparse, mysterious contents. Projections and television screens, as well as the changing materials of Samarth’s costumes, enhance the multimedia work.
Malani’s interest in Medea’s story spanned multiple projects over several years. By refocusing a familiar myth on an abandoned woman rather than its male hero, Medeamaterial provides an unsettling, occasionally gruesome meditation on the many forms of destruction stemming from colonisation, war, and fundamentalism. Reflecting her enduring interest in women in myth and history, Malani’s work also responds to the destructive effects of India’s growing Hindu fundamentalism.
Malani’s interest in Medea’s story spanned multiple projects over several years. By refocusing a familiar myth on an abandoned woman rather than its male hero, Medeamaterial provides an unsettling, occasionally gruesome meditation on the many forms of destruction stemming from colonisation, war, and fundamentalism. Reflecting her enduring interest in women in myth and history, Malani’s work also responds to the destructive effects of India’s growing Hindu fundamentalism.
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