Soffreh

Overview

Soffreh, the title of Gita Meh’s installation and performance piece for Sharjah Biennial 9, is a Farsi word meaning ‘tablecloth.’ It alludes to the 1400-year-old religious tradition, performed by women for women, of preparing food for a party of fifty or more people each time one desires something from Allah.

Within the Bait Al Serkal courtyard, Meh recreated Soffreh, setting up an interactive space that required the participation of the Biennial audience. Visitors were invited to sit around a food-laden tablecloth made of sugar and to share their experiences, conversation and ultimately friendship. They were also encouraged to draw in the sugar, transforming it into a canvas.

Soffreh, Meh explains, explores the ways in which the process of cultural evolution can promote and provoke 'a sense of generosity, mercifulness, kindness and peace,' helping to create diverse human landscapes that reflect the practice of integration across borders.

Artist’s quotation from Provisions, Book 1, catalogue for Sharjah Biennial 9.


This project was part or Sharjah Biennial 9