Dubai-based Indian artist Vikram Divecha’s show “El Dorado”, held at Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde until May 1, presents migrant labour and isolation around Abu Dhabi’s decommissioned El Dorado Cinema which was a beloved old institution.
When Abu Dhabi’s El Dorado Cinema was closed and was being emptied in 2017, Vikram Divecha found a projectionist’s block calendar diary. Assembling real and fictional accounts, interviews and the calendar diary notes, the artist has scripted a fictional character around the projectionist, who has become the main hero.
Vikram Divecha tries to evoke the projectionist’s portrait in a series of oil paintings on wood panels and works on paper, inspired by the colour palettes of South Asian films. The paintings are overlaid with the projectionist’s notes, bringing to mind questions of vision, and isolation that haunts migrant workers.
Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde, launched in 2010, represents contemporary artists from the MENA region and beyond.
Fom more information, please visit Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde
