This is the first solo show in Madrid of internationally renowned artist Tarek Atoui. The exhibition is the result of the in-depth research that the Franco-Lebanese musician and sound artist has been pursuing since 2022, exploring the rural artisanal and musical traditions of the Arab world and North Africa, and using sound and sonic artifacts to bring them closer to audiences.
This ambitious project has been commissioned from its inception by TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary and is curated by Daniela Zyman, artistic director of TBA21. Developed over more than three years of research and exchanges between the artist and musicians and artisans of Morocco’s Atlas Mountains, it generated an of traditional music, sounds, and artisanal objects from along ancient trade and pilgrimage routes.
The exhibition “At-Tāriq”—which means “the morning star” or “the nightcomer”—departs from the traditions of the Amazigh people (referred to as Berbers from a neocolonial perspective) to offer a deeper speculation on the notion of hospitality. Inspired by the night’s association with the unknown, At-Tāriq extends an invitation to engage with rural cultural and ecological legacies that resonate deeply in the contemporary world. Ultimately, the exhibition becomes a conduit for conversations about relationships, memory, identity, and the poetic act of listening.
Five listening stations inspired by majlis
The show’s innovative format transforms the gallery of the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza into five majlis, traditional spaces of hospitality and welcome in Arab and Eastern homes. Atoui reimagines and deconstructs these majlis into sound installations, immersive spaces for listening and resting.
Amazigh music is profoundly connected to craft and shapes both the cultural identity and means of subsistence of the Atlas Mountains. Each of the five listening stations consists of traditional musical instruments made by artisans from the region, as well as commissioned ceramic, textile, or stone objects, as well as kinetic sculptures and sound devices created especially by the artist.
Known for his experimental approach to music, Atoui amplifies the acoustic properties of bronze, textile, stone, ceramic, and other materials. The installation includes digital and analog instruments which the artist designed to perform the soundscape that can be heard throughout the exhibition. Tools like lasers, optical lenses, and tape loopers read sounds embedded in textiles, rocks, jewelry, and pottery. These objects vibrate, scrape surfaces, or move mechanically to rewrite this constantly mutating composition.
at TBA21 – Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid
until May 18, 2025
