Untitled 14km - Youness Atbane

Name: Untitled 14km - Youness Atbane
Start: 2026-10-02T19:00:00+0400
End: 2026-10-02T23:00:00+0400
Location: The Black Box Theater, The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi

The Black Box Theater, The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi

jeu. 01 oct. - ven. 02 oct.

The Black Box Theater, The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi

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Untitled 14km investigates how the contemporary art world engages with questions of identity, with a particular focus on what is framed as “Arab identity.”

In the imaginary museum of North Africa, Middle East Contemporary Art, an Arab-Andalusian poet, a museum director, a curator, and a contemporary artist attempt to conceive an exhibition that re-examines modernism through two parallel lenses: the poetic legacy of the Arab-Andalusian era and the practices of established contemporary Arab artists. Their exchanges reveal the tensions embedded in translating historical narratives into contemporary artistic frameworks.

Through this constructed situation, the project exposes the underlying negotiations, frictions, and power dynamics that shape the definition of a so-called “contemporary Arab identity” within the global art system. It questions legitimacy, authority, and representation, highlighting how identity is not fixed but continuously produced through discourse, competition, and institutional validation.

Duration: 60 minutes Age restriction: 14+ This performance contains intense sounds and flashing lights

Youness Atbane
Born in 1982 in Safi, Morocco, Youness Atbane is an artist working across a variety of media. By examining ambiguity and origins through experience and variation, Atbane seeks to enhance the dynamic between audience and author, objectifying emotions and investigating the duality that develops through different interpretations.

In 2002, he studied graphic art and design in Casablanca. He has been involved in various artistic programs and performances in France, Morocco, Belgium, and Spain. In 2008, he earned an MA in choreography from the "EX E.R.CE08" program at the National Choreographic Centre of Montpellier. In 2010, he obtained a Master’s degree in Art and Museology from the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, France.

His work bears strong political references, responds directly to his surrounding environment, and uses his own everyday experiences as a starting point. With a subtle, minimalist approach, he seeks to seduce the viewer into a world of ongoing equilibrium and the interval that articulates the stream of daily events in order to find poetic meaning in everyday life. His artistic interests focus on the limitations of communication used to visualize reality, the attempt at dialogue, the dissonance between form and content, and the dysfunctions of language. In short, the lack of clear references is a key element in his work.

Atbane currently lives and works in Casablanca and Berlin. He has exhibited his installations and performances at La Casa Encendida in Madrid, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Rome, the Parallel Project at the 2011 Venice Biennale, the Talmart Gallery in Paris, the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Mohammed VI Museum of Contemporary Art in Rabat, and, most recently, the Headlands Center for the Arts in San Francisco.

The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for all patrons.

Entry to the NYUAD Campus is through either the East or West Parking or the Welcome Center.

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The Black Box Theater, The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi

The Black Box Theater , Saadiyat Marina District Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates