Catalogue Identity Flux

In New Message, two views merge: that of Salim Bayri, an artist raised in Casablanca and now residing in Amsterdam, and his childhood acquaintance Hamza Ababsa, with whom Bayri used to practice gymnastics. By chance, they crossed paths a few years ago in Casablanca, after not having spoken for over twenty years. This chance encounter sparked the realization of a potential parallel life for Bayri, which he saw reflected in Hamza. They have since stayed in touch by sending each other photos of their immediate surroundings such as benches, people holding hands, plants building materials. In New Message, Bayri brings together these two perspectives in new images that do not belong to either of them, but form a kind of in-between state generated by a program developed by Bayri, over which neither of the image makers has control. This series of photos could represent the camera roll of Sad Ali, an alter ego that frequently emerges in Salim's work. New images will appear in the exhibition as Salim and Hamza exchange photos.

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