In 2006, the artist Walid Sadek exhibited his Love Is Blind.  The installation consisted of two parallel white walls on which Sadek placed five captions.

 

The captions referenced paintings by Mustafa Farroukh, the founder of a national Lebanese art movement, and included Farroukh’s name, the title, date, and provenance of a Farroukh painting I expected to see displayed next to the caption, but was not.

 

In 2008, I asked Walid to borrow his installation for this exhibition.  Walid refused. 

 

His refusal was most appropriate. 

 

Walid must have sensed that was fascinated me was not his installation, and even less Farroukh’s paintings.  He must have sensed that what I am literally after are the shadows that shaped his walls and captions.  And that in this regard, I don’t need his permission because these shadows move independently of his will.