Lawrence Abu Hamdan: ‘Art is a mode of truth production’

Lawrence Abu Hamdan decodes the world through sound. A self-proclaimed ‘private ear’, the Dubai-based artist leads audio investigations that uncover often unsavory truths, such as goods trafficking or the realities of a Syrian prison. ‘Ear-witness testimony, as opposed to eye-witness testimony is the most prevalent source of evidence,’ says Abu Hamdan, who has collaborated with institutions including Amnesty International and Defense for Children International. ‘Why?,’ he adds, ‘because sound leaks’. It is precisely those leakages that the artist captures and dissects: the ‘pops’ of murderous bullets and regional accents used to determine asylum seekers’ legitimacy. For Abu Hamdan, sounds are telltale signs of the many invisible – and usually oppressive – political forces at play.

For this new episode of 'Meet the Artists', Abu Hamdan welcomed Art Basel to his studio in Dubai’s former industrial quarter Alserkal Avenue.

Lawrence Abu Hamdan is represented by Mor Charpentier (Paris, Bogotá), Sfeir-Semler (Hamburg, Beirut), and Maureen Paley (London, Hove).