Power and oil in Monira Al Qadiri’s first solo exhibition in Sweden

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. In the media of sculpture, video and installation, she explores links between the oil industry, identity and cultural heritage.

– Presenting Al Qadiri to the Swedish public is an important and much anticipated event. She is one of the most exciting artists on the international art scene today. The questions she deals with are highly relevant to contemporary society. Her works depict the paradoxical role that oil plays in our world – as a symbol of economic growth and the destruction of the environment, says Johan Sjöström, curator at the Gothenburg Museum of Art and of the exhibition.

Works with shimmering colours and futuristic forms
Monira Al Qadiri was born in 1983 in Senegal, grew up in Kuwait, and now lives in Berlin. 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.

– Several of the sculptures are funny and kitschy. They remind us of colourful fidget toys for children but represent objects that are destroying the planet. One of the works’ basic tenets is that almost everything around us, from plastic items and cleaning products to the clothes on our bodies, comes from oil. It is a blessing, but it has also led to wars, conflicts and the ruthless exploitation of natural resources, continues Johan Sjöström.

– 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. Another theme I have worked with for a long time is the ocean, seen as a dramatic, mutable and unpredictable ecosystem. A new series of sculptures is based on the poisonous jellyfish Portuguese man o’war, whose survival depends on its ability to absorb other organisms and integrate itself into them, says Monira Al Qadiri.

Opening a dialogue about the history and future of oil
Another central work in the exhibition is the video installation Crude Eye, which explores the cultural implications of oil, starting out from a personal childhood memory of an oil refinery in Kuwait. Using slow, poetic dolly shots and a miniature refinery, Al Qadiri creates a meditative journey that invites us to reflect over humanity’s dependency on, and consumption of, fossil fuels.

– It feels significant and meaningful to introduce Monira Al Qadiri in Sweden. Her visual works, in a style reminiscent of pop art, capture the viewer’s attention, but also make it clear that the oil industry and its consequences concern us all. With Monira Al Qadiri, we open a broader dialogue about the history and future of oil – not only in the Middle East, but in the Nordic countries and the rest of the world as well, says Patrik Steorn, Director of the Gothenburg Museum of Art.

About Monira Al Qadiri
Monira Al Qadiri (born in Senegal, 1983) is an artist with Kuwaiti roots. She trained in Tokyo and now lives in Berlin. The themes in her works range from science-fiction to history and often refer to the visual and cultural heritage of the oil industry, particularly in the Gulf region. Al Qadiri has exhibited at prominent international institutions and biennales. Her art sheds light on how natural resources shape both societies and human narratives.

Monira Al Qadiri, Burning Desire, runs 10 May–9 November 2025 at the Gothenburg Museum of Art.

PRESS PREVIEW
Thursday 8 May, 11 am, at the Gothenburg Museum of Art. More information and an invitation to the press preview will follow. Additional press images will be published in conjunction with the press preview.

OPENING
The opening, including an inauguration speech, will be held on Saturday, 10 May.