Yasmine Kasem ︎
Yasmine Kasem Kasem’s art focus on the precariousness within the layers of identity and what it is to be Egyptian- American, Muslim and Queer. Her work is currently on view at the San Diego Art Institute's Illumination: 21st Century Interactions with Art + Science + Technology.These cotton drawings are a series of scenes from a memory I have of my last day spent in my former home city with close friends before moving to California. Initially intended to be a quiet sendoff with a close friend, a torrential downpour of rain had battered the city all day and flooded many of the streets.
It’s August, and the air is so thick with moisture it’s like trying to breathe through a wet towel. I’m on my way to Ray’s after my last day of work. I didn’t get much done -- we watched the wind-swept rain and lightning from the porch much of the afternoon. It was so dark in the middle of the day, we needed to turn on all the lights. But now the sky is peach and rosy, you’d never think such flooding would occur. I’m parked on a hill so the waters won’t take my car, and I see my friend blissfully wading through the street water to retrieve me. We sheltered on the porch on a soaking wicker couch with cushions as red as the wine we sipped. Drizzle misting through the awning and glazing our faces. It was peaceful. It was a prayer.
We Waded through Our Paradise #2, 2019
Unraveled Cotton Piping, Dye
6" x 4.5"
Originally: $50
Unraveled Cotton Piping, Dye
6" x 4.5"
Originally: $50
