Burning Desire
10 May–9 November 2025
Huge oil molecules meet kitschy deep-sea drills and poetic pan shots over refineries. The Gothenburg Museum of Art presents the celebrated Kuwaiti artist Monira Al Qadiri’s first solo exhibition in Sweden.
Monira Al Qadiri was born in 1983 in Senegal, grew up in Kuwait, and now lives in Berlin. Her works moves between science fiction and history, often referencing the visual and cultural heritage of the oil industry, particularly in the Gulf region. Through sculptures, installations, and video works, she explores humanity’s relationship with and dependence on oil, as well as how culture, climate, identity, and history are influenced by fossil fuels and the oil industry.
New sculptural work
The exhibition Burning Desire at the Gothenburg Museum of Art contains seven important works from recent years, with an emphasis on sculpture. Brightly coloured oil drills and over-sized plastic oil molecules are shown alongside video works and installations made from polyester and soap. The presentation also features a new, inflatable work, made in PVC-coated fabric, which makes its first public appearance.
About Monira Al Qadiri
Monira Al Qadiri (born 1983 in Senegal) is an artist with roots in Kuwait. She is educated in Tokyo and currently resides in Berlin. Al Qadiri has exhibited internationally at prominent institutions and biennales, and her art highlights how natural resources shape both societies and human narratives.
Monira Al Qadiri -“The exhibition gathers several different projects. From various angles, they treat how oil creates rifts in human societies, in culture and in the history of technology.”
Toppbild: Monira Al Qadiri, Crude Eye, detalj, 2022. © Courtesy of the artist.