In Mohammed Kazem's monumental work, viewers are invited to pass through a large-scale figure of the number zero on which numerous geographic coordinates, representing all countries of the world, are inscribed in numeric form

The work is based on the significance of the number zero – one of the first important innovations by a Muslim scientist. The course of history was changed when Persian scholar Muhammad Ibn Musa Al-Khwarizmi discovered the number zero and considered it a number within the field of algebra. Originally conceived for the United Arab Emirates and the metropolitan city of Abu Dhabi, whose population is comprised of a diversity of nationalities, races, and religions, the work embodies the principle of coexistence and peace, inviting viewers to pass through it, as if starting anew from equal ground. As the day progresses, light, shadows, and reflections over the digital structure change, further enhancing the connection between the work and its natural surroundings.

Mohammed Kazem's artistic practice spans video, photography, and performance, seeking new ways of apprehending his environment and experiences. The work is informed by his training as a musician. He was a member of the Emirates Fine Arts Society and is one of the Five, an informal group of Emirati artists at the vanguard of conceptual and interdisciplinary art practice. Kazem has participated in numerous group shows, in Abu Dhabi, New York, Gwangju, Houston, etc. In 2013 he represented the UAE at the Venice Biennale with an immersive video installation entitled Walking on Water, curated by Reem Fadda, and in 2015 he showcased works from the Tongue series at 1980 – Today, curated by Hoor Al Qasimi.

Courtesy of the artist