Raqib Shaw

Raqib Shaw’s 2013 exhibition was the first time the artists work had been shown in the Czech Republic. Working closely with the Rudolfinium and curator Petr Nedoma Shaw selected a series of works which sort to express the full depth and complexity of his practise.

“Raqib Shaw creates bestial energy-filled scenes with a strong erotic or even sadomasochistic subtext, richly filled with hybrid creatures – half human, half animal – whose behaviour is controlled by basal instincts. The decoratively-conceived backgrounds of scenes blend rich oriental carpet patterns and ornamental elements of Persian illuminated manuscripts from the 15th century – on which Raqib Shaw often focuses thematically, when he loosely bases his work on Persian and Greco-Roman mythological stories and fables. The animal scenes form a complex which combines the evocatively-conceived work of old masters of the Western tradition, including Hans Holbein and Hieronymus Bosch, as well as the history of visual and literary cultures of East and West.” – Galerie Rudolfinium.

The exhibition was a collaboration between Manchester Art Gallery and Rudolfinum Prague.