SISLEJ XHAFA
Sislej Xhafa (born 1970 in Kosovo, lives in New York, USA)
presents Khaleen, one hand woven carpet, 5,70 x 1,90 meters, made in Afghanistan.
Sislej Xhafa does not possess any specific aesthetic language that he can claim, but his works feed on the friction between different cultures, and as an artist he moves easily from one context to another. Contaminating styles and idioms, his work sets in motion the dynamics in the relationship between our institutional constructions and our lived reality.
Khaleen serves as the title of Xhafa’s hand woven rugs, made in some remote village in Afghanistan whose existence most of us would never have heard of. All we might know is superficial and sporadic pieces of information, such as: they are constantly at war, they are famous for making rugs and women have to wear a burka.
Khaleen are not just any carpets, but have the design of one hundred dollar bills. With its length measuring almost six meters, this carpet would surely not qualify as the biggest carpet ever, however it could be the biggest handmade dollar bill! Perhaps it is the flying carpet that so many ancient tales have told us about, the desirable object of our past and future, dreams and fantasies.
Venue
The Old Post Office
