Al-Warqaa draws inspiration from Avicenna’s poem Ode to a Human Soul, in which the soul’s journey is metaphorically compared to the flight of a dove. In this reading, the soul becomes a timeless, ethereal entity—one that transcends the physical body after death.
The artwork takes the form of a suspended light-based sculpture. Illuminated acrylic outlines reveal the delicate structure of a dove’s skeleton floating within the gallery space. Yet a striking intervention disrupts this ascension: the skeletal form is tethered to a rock.
This tension between elevation and gravity reflects the dual condition of the soul—its yearning for transcendence and the earthly forces that keep it bound. The work hovers between the metaphysical and the material, embodying the fragile balance between liberation and attachment.
Installation views
The New York Times – Global Edition, 2013
Details:
- Suspended stainless-steel installation
- Dim.: 190 × 600 × 400 cm
- Acrylic sheets
- LED lights
- Hemp rope
- Custom rock.
- C. by: Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah