Describing herself as a "professional residency artist," Mona Hatoum attributes part of her creativity to being a foreigner, and has frequently worked in international studio programs. Responding to political events in the early eighties, Hatoum confronted her public with graphic performances.
Education
In an attempt to settle with her mother, Hatoum attended the Beirut University College in Lebanon to study graphic design.
During a visit to London in 1975, civil war broke out in Lebanon and Hatoum was forced into exile. She stayed in London, training at both the Byam Shaw School of Art and the Slade School of Fine Art (University College, London) between the years 1975 and 1981.
Career
After obtaining her degree, Hatoum began working with an advertising agency.
Since 1983, Mona Hatoum has been displaying both her installations and her video performance art pieces on exhibitions around the world. She has been featured in individual exhibitions as recently as 2011 in White Cube in London.
She has also participated in a number of recognized group exhibitions, including: The Turner Prize (1995), Venice Biennale (1995 and 2005), Biennale of Sydney (2006) and the Biennale of Montreal; Drone the automated image (2013). A solo exhibition entitled "Turbulence" is organised in 2014 by Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha.
Politics
As a Palestinian who grew up in Lebanon, Mona Hatoum is extremely vigilant when it comes to political injustice. Her work grows out of her struggle against institutional violence, the threat to and vulnerability of the individual. She seems to go along with the public’s expectations, only to subsequently overturn them.
Views
Hatoum's Object Art and her installations, which bear a certain relation to Minimalist sculpture and Conceptual Art, are enriched by both political and personal content. Steel, glass, and barbed wire conscientiously employed—through changes in pro-portion or function—serve to transform everyday items into alien objects.
Personality
As a Palestinian who grew up in Lebanon, Mona Hatoum is extremely vigilant when it comes to political injustice. Her work grows out of her struggle against institutional violence, the threat to and vulnerability of the individual. She seems to go along with the public’s expectations, only to subsequently overturn them.