“I work in the hope that the material that I am using and the way I am assembling the sculpture will make it work like an amulet”
AT: Where are you from and how/why did you start engaging with art?
MBH: I was born in Milan, Italy. I always had a predisposition for drawing and painting, growing up with an Islamic Art painter as a father.
AT: When did it become serious?
MBH: It became serious in my teenage years, during which I truly understood that all I wanted to do was Art and nothing else. That was the moment when I decided to canalize all my efforts, dreams, and endeavors in that direction.
AT: Is there any person who has been significant in your breakthrough as an artist?
MBH: All the people that discouraged me from pursuing, and all the ones that encouraged me.
AT: What is your first approach to the work? How would you describe your practice?
MBH: It’s a religious approach, a symbolic overture, a salvation hope. It’s an attempt to retain a force, to report and exorcising, to preserve and to kill.
“Exhaust (recharging)”, 2018; Steel, silicone, pigment, wax, resin, plaster, water; 110x110x20 cm.
AT: What do you aim to reach with your work?
MBH: Immortality.
AT: What are your favorite tools and materials for working?
MBH: Epossidic resin, plaster, liquids, gestures, and symbols.
AT: What do you feel while you work? Do you usually think about the final outcome beforehand?
MBH: I work in the hope that the material that I am using and the way I am assembling the sculpture will make it work like an amulet. I hope that the sculpture could defend itself, somehow.
AT: How do you understand that a work is finished?
MBH: I don’t, but he does. He looks at you, standing there.
View from Extended protection / Allegoric defence, 2019, solo show by Monia Ben Hamouda, CC Gallery, Malmö (SWE).
AT: Where does the inspiration for the work come from?
MBH: From what I kept inside from the outside.
AT: Are there any artists who influenced your works? Why?
MBH: Berinde De Bruyckere for her yearning, Donna Huanca for her strength, Eva Hesse for her commitment, Steve McQueen for his greatness.
AT: How important is the role of social media for you?
MBH: As a Millenial, it’s important, but as an Artist not really
“Selfportait I”, 2019, CC Gallery, Malmö (SWE).
AT: As an artist, what is your point of view about the contemporary art system?
MBH: It’s boring.
AT: What do you find to be the most challenging or daunting thing about pursuing art? What is the most rewarding part of working as an artist?
MBH: Every artist is ready to sacrifice everything. To die for Art, to have nothing in return. This is our challenge but also our reward. The History of art is made up of delays and revolutions: we are ready to take the risk.
AT: What do you do besides art?
MBH: Not so much, I’m kind of obsessed with my work, but I have surely a passion for Cinema.
AT: What are your goals and expectations for the future?
MBH: Be part of the History of Art.
“Prediction”, 2019; Installation view from Love Data – Alios 16ème Biennale D’Art Contemporain, Théâtre Cravey Pavilion, La Teste-De-Bûch (FR).
Monia Ben Hamouda (b. 1991), Italian born, Tunisian roots is a visual artist currently living and working in Milan, Italy. Her work, mostly sculptural, has an almost intangible quality, creating a deep sense of post-digital unease through her perfectly curated combinations of organic and synthetic materials. In the collision of contrasting elements, Ben Hamouda expose the persistent strangeness and complex symbolism of human feelings. She is interested in the power of some images, or rather in images that contain a loss of power. She defines her work as ambiguous, laying, angry, somehow passive-aggressive: yielding but ready to attack you.
