Mathaf Collections

black ceremony

Black Ceremony, a progression of ten different scenes exploring themes of death and homecoming, exploded over a vast stretch of open land near Mathaf on Monday, December 5. The explosion event appeared like drops of ink splattered across the sky, instantaneously creating black blossoms, followed by thunderous noise. 8,300 shells embedded with computer microchips were ignited to form a black pyramid that stands above the earth, as if a wordless tombstone. Black Ceremony took place near the museum and was open to the public. Video of Black Ceremony is presented as part of the exhibition, alongside six other videos of previous explosion events.

Pictured above: Black Ceremony (2011), Realized on site outside Mathaf: Arab Museum of Art, Doha, December 5, 2011, Approximately 3 minutes, Explosion area 29,500 sq. meters, 8,300 black smoke shells fitted with computer chips, Commissioned by Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Photo by Lin Yi, Courtesy Cai Studio