Unnarrated

About

Unnarrated is an installation by the ElZi Collective which uses fragmented moving image,  reflection and performance to dismantle western notions of knowing in relation to feminine  spirituality in North Africa. Unnarrated explores oral histories and notions deconstructing  what is beyond language and communication within the context of North African cultures.  

For this exhibition, ElZi Collective researched spirituality and mysticism in relation to the  influence of Islam in North Africa, particularly feminine spirituality. These practices or, some times even rituals, represent a strand of knowledge that has not been authentically docu mented in history books yet rather passed on orally through generations, which, at times,  destabilised the continuity of the narrative.

The artists are particularly interested in the  notion of ‘external inaccessibility of knowledge’, an inaccessibility that has not been defined  by the Western template of knowledge, one that was shaped through post-colonial, collec tive social knowledge. This artistic interest subsequently scrutinises the diasporic approach  to understanding one’s identity while preserving cultural continuum. 

Exposing the different layers of collective knowledge and its authentic interpretations, Unnarrated aims to widen the understanding/perceptions of communication beyond Western  ideologies. while also initiating the space of redefining religion through studying its social  performance and perceptions within the North African context.