Exhibition by artist Khuzama Abu Joudeh opens at the National Museum on Thursday
Amman2 min read
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The solo exhibition by Jordanian artist Khuzama Abu Joudeh, titled "When Clay Becomes a Body," will open next Thursday at the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts at 7:00 PM in Gallery Wasl - Building 2. The exhibition will run until October 8.
The exhibition presents a collection of ceramic works that Abu Joudeh has created over the years, in which clay has been transformed into a space to reclaim personal and human experiences ranging from pain, resilience, and fragility to strength, joy, achievement, and hope.
The artist does not treat clay merely as a material for sculpting; she sees it as an extension of memory and the self, and a medium for expressing emotions that are sometimes difficult for words to carry.
Through pressing, pulling, shaping, and rebuilding, the hand leaves the imprint of experience on the material, making cracks, fractures, and eroded textures part of the work's identity, rather than flaws to be hidden.
The exhibition is divided into three main sculptural groups, each evoking an aspect of the human transformation journey.
In the "Tulip Collection," blooming is present as a symbol of birth and renewal, while the "Horizon Collection" is preoccupied with layers, depth, and the memories and experiences hidden by surfaces that accumulate in the formation of the self.
The "Bull Collection" evokes strength, challenge, and resilience through fractured bodies that bear the marks of what they have endured, yet remain cohesive; in a vision that makes fragility part of the composition of strength, not its opposite.
Fire plays an essential role in completing this journey, as it transforms fragile clay into solid ceramic bodies while keeping the traces of pressure and cracks present on their surface, becoming a witness to the transformations the material has undergone.
Through "When Clay Becomes a Body," Abu Joudeh presents the viewer with an artistic experience that transcends ceramics to address human questions about fragility, strength, memory, and the ability to reshape oneself and continue despite the scars left by time and experience.
