The Short Century

The 20th century was witness to the world's most violent wars, the largest human migrations, the rapid expansion of cities (now the largest centres of human life), the dominance of mechanised industry, and the rapid rise, conflict, and collapse of expansive ideologies. This exhibition explores the multiple entry points and trajectories of the overlapping, and sometimes opposing, expressions of modernism in the Arab World that rise, peak, and fall throughout the 20th century, and provide context to current expressions of globalised contemporary art. 

A View from the Citadel by Youssef KamelBarjeel Art Foundation

Paysage d’Italie by Mohammed NaghiBarjeel Art Foundation

Le cafe a Chypre by Mohammed NaghiBarjeel Art Foundation

Untitled, Kamel Moustafa, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Open Gate, Youssef Kamel, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Nubian Girl, Ervand Demerdjian, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Assouan - Les Rochers, Mahmoud Said, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Le Canal de Mahmoudieh, Mahmoud Said, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Le Chat Blanc (Esquisse), Mahmoud Said, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled Paysage, Clea Badaro, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Portrait of an Italian Woman, Abdel Hadi El Gazzar, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Portrait of a Couple, Seif Wanly, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Portrait, Abdul Hadi El Gazzar, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Der Gemahl, Marwan Kassab Bachi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Portrait, Ramses Younan, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Cesar, Salah Abdel Kerim, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled, Jewad Selim, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Nocturne, Seif Wanly, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Watermelon series, Hafiz Droubi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Ezba’, Inji Efflatoun, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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La Femme et Le Coq, Hatim Elmekki, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled, Ismail Fattah, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Femme et Mur (Woman and Wall), Mohammed Issiakhem, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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The Parting, Thuraya Al-Baqsami, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Woman Sewing, Louay Kayyali, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Memory of the First of February: The Arab Unity (Study), Mahmoud Hammad, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Il nous a dit comment cela s'est passé (He told us how it happened), Kadhim Hayder, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Le Gardien de La Vie | The Protector of Life | Homat al Hayat, Hamed Ewais, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Fatigued Ten Horses Converse with Nothing (The Martyrs Epic), Kadhim Hayder, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Moon Walkers "Women and the Veil" series, Laila Shawa, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Aqni’at al-jawf (Al-Jawf Masks), Dia Azzawi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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White Cube in Brown Cube, Samia Halaby, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Head, Marwan Kassab Bachi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Alea, Ahmed Cherkaoui, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Calligraphic Compositions, Ahmad Shibrain, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Standing Owl, Adam Henein, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Icons of Moudarres, Fateh Moudarres, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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The Light from Within the Green, Abdel Hadi El Gazzar, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Composition in Yellow, Saloua Raouda Choucair, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Femme aux Deux Paons Avec Aquarium, Baya, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled, Nouri Al Rawi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Abstraction vert, Mohammed Khadda, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled, Mohamed Chebaa, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled (The Birds), Hussein Madi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Sans Titre, Fouad Bellamine, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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The Challenge, Sami Mohammed, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Permanent Punishment (Eternal Torment), Abdullah Muharraqi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled, Abdul Qader Al Rais, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Earthquake, Ibrahim Ismail, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Assouan, Ragheb Ayad, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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The High Dam, Effat Nagi, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Al Deek Al Faseeh (The Articulate Cockerel), Shakir Hassan Al Said, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Untitled, Abdul Hadi El Gazzar, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Raed Al Fada, Ibrahim Ismail, From the collection of: Barjeel Art Foundation
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Credits: Story

Curators: Karim Sultan and Suheyla Takesh

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.

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