Look Up and You’ll Find Me
2023
WADI NAMAR
Lightart
2 x 1.5 x 1.5 m
Look Up and You’ll Find Me is a glowing landscape oasis that represents a fallen star in the desert. In Islam, light epitomizes guidance, and ancient Arabs used stars as a visual compass to help them pass through the desert. Stars have since evolved into practical and cultural landmarks that hold historical importance to the Arab community, and remain continuously interwoven into daily lives.
This piece uses the Suhail star known as the “Canopus”, one of the brightest stars in the galaxy. On the Arabian Peninsula, folklore stories, poems, music, and science use the Suhail to depict tales of lovers, guidance, and truth. Alamoudi here creates a new story about the Suhail star. By physically bringing it to the ground, he creates a story of finding one another in the oasis, helping us explore who we are and taking us back home.
Look Up and You’ll Find Me, 2023 © Abdullah Alamoudi
Commissioned by RCRC and Riyadh Art