Art Dubai Commissions 2016, Dubai

In the ongoing project titled Plot, Premnath explores the paradox between the direct occupation of land with one’s body (squatting)––a primordial form of land ownership––and the abstract accumulation of property evidenced by the real estate market.

This iteration of the project uses the front and back (recto and verso) of what may be considered either an advertising banner or a makeshift wall. The 16ft long and 8ft tall banner, titled Projections (8000 miles/10 seconds apart), is made of corrugated plastic with torn, laserjet prints adhered to one side of the panel. The image on the front of the banner interweaves two photographs shot 10 seconds apart, documenting the moment when a luxury real-estate billboard in Dubai with the image of Donald Trump was replaced after his controversial remarks on US immigration. One of the sculptures titled Slump leans on the front of the banner.

Behind the banner two stacked metal frames are draped with sheets of sand, 2 feet wide and six feet long. These prone figures titled Slump (Tired/Tiered), also function as plots of land–a site the size of a body.

Art Dubai: happiness and human rights by Rachel Spence, Financial Times
Art Dubai’s 10th Edition Represents Art’s Underreported Voices by Grace Banks, Forbes
Interview with Artists of Art Dubai Commissions 2016 by Anabelle de Gersigny, Art Asia Pacific