How do we continue to exist? This is a question raised by Guy Mannes-Abbott in his chapter on the oeuvre of Emily Jacir for Dissonant Archives: Contemporary Visual Culture and Contested Narratives in the Middle East<\/em> (2015). For artists and people who live and work in conflict zones, there is a complex relationship between survival and methodology that results in imaginative and generative cultural production, in spite of oppressive conditions. Arguably, this question \u2014 of methods and resilience \u2014 speaks directly to Jacir\u2019s artistic practice, which challenges and investigates dominant forms of power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Born in Palestine, Jacir is an artist and filmmaker whose work often highlights her research methods and processes, making use of various disciplines and media. In her series Where We Come From<\/em> (2001\u20132003), Jacir asks Palestinians \u201cIf I could do something for you, anywhere in Palestine, what would it be?\u201d With this, the artist takes on the almost banal role of fulfilling her participants\u2019 wishes. The resulting installation of texts and photographs is striking: a tracing of Jacir\u2019s movement through space and across barriers, which she is free to do because of her American passport. We see the act of tracing \u2014 or rather a gathering of traces \u2014 again in Material for a Film<\/em> (2004\u20132007), in which Jacir commemorates the life of translator and intellectual Wael Zuaiter, through the reactivation of a personal archive. Here she carefully and intimately assembles documentation of Zuaiter to point to the larger political issue of erasing and silencing narratives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps less discussed is the impact and influence of Europe on Jacir\u2019s work, as with Notes for a Cannon<\/em> (2016) andLa Mia Mappa<\/em> (2018). These works bring together countries and time zones to examine their shared history under British colonial rule. The manipulation and transformation of time, memory, and place are all crucial elements in Emily Jacir\u2019s ongoing work. Furthermore, these projects shed light on how identities are constructed in and out of conflict, while proposing ways that we might conceive of the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\n