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Faheem Majeed

Images

Faheem Majeed, Planting and Maintaining a Perennial Garden, 2012. Installation view, Hyde Park Art Center, 2012. Courtesy of the artist

Photo: Tony Smith

Faheem Majeed, Planting and Maintaining a Perennial Garden, 2012. Installation view, Hyde Park Art Center, 2012. Courtesy of the artist

Photo: Tony Smith Courtesy of the artist

Installation view, Faheem Majeed studio, 2009

Photo: Chris Tourre courtesy of the artist

Faheem Majeed, Jack Stones, 2012. Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts

Photo: David Robert Elliott courtesy of the University of Chicago

Faheem Majeed, If You Lived Here, You’d Be Home By Now, 2012. Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts

Photo: David Robert Elliott courtesy of the University of Chicago

About

Artist Faheem Majeed(American, b. 1976) is a builder—literally and metaphorically. For his first solo museum exhibition, he questions how space becomes place, and, further, how places can foster a sense of home and belonging. The MCA—a public institution and, by extension, a type of public space—becomes the armature for the artist's investigation.

A resident of South Shore Chicago, Majeed draws upon the material makeup of his neighborhood and surrounding areas as an entry point into questions around civic-mindedness, community activism, and institutional racism. As part of his studio practice, the artist transforms materials such as particleboard, scrap metal, wood, discarded signs, and billboard remnants, breathing new life into these often overlooked and devalued materials. His broader engagement with the arts also involves arts administration, curation, and community facilitation, all of which feed into his larger practice.

In addition to presenting sculptural works and a room-sized installation, Majeed invites collaborators to activate the space through events and performances (see Related Events at top right). In this way, the exhibition presents a plurality of voices, cultural perspectives, and art-making strategies that develop and expand organically, accumulating and metabolizing different materials and visitors’ experiences. Even if only temporarily, the exhibition becomes a microcosm of the greater work the artist is doing, while also alluding and drawing attention to the work still to be done.

To extend the exhibition's reach, the MCA is partnering with the South Side Community Art Center in Chicago, which hosts an exhibition curated by MCA Teen Creative Agency alumni Kara Franco and Lamar Gayles. Initiated by Majeed, this will be the first curatorial opportunity for Franco and Gayles to explore notions of place-making and activism in the context of SSCAC. The exhibition opens in May of 2015.

BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed is organized by Curatorial Assistant Steven L. Bridges

Installation Images

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Installation view, BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed, MCA Chicago, Mar 10–Aug 16, 2015

Photo: Nathan Keay, © MCA Chicago

Exhibition Video

BMO Harris Bank Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed video still

For his first solo museum exhibition, artist Faheem Majeed (American, b. 1976) presents sculptural works made of materials that reflect the makeup of his Chicago neighborhood of South Shore, materials like particle board, scrap metal, wood, discarded signs, and billboard remnants. Majeed breathes new life into these often overlooked and devalued materials to create works that engage issues of civic-mindedness, community activism, and institutional racism. Also as part of the exhibition, Majeed invites different collaborators to activate a room-sized installation created specifically for the exhibition through events and performances that will be held periodically throughout the run of the show, creating a platform within the gallery to express different voices, cultural perspectives, and art-making strategies.

Funding

Major support for BMO Harris Banks Chicago Works: Faheem Majeed is provided by BMO Harris Bank.

Additional generous support is provided by the Sandra and Jack Guthman Chicago Works Exhibition Fund.