Can you hear my hands? Can I indulge you in a silent conversation? Look. Beyond what you see everyday. Through your eyes. Through mine. Hear in profound silence. Let’s meet in the middle.

Silent Conversations, a photo-film-AR installation commissioned by Dubai Culture for the Sikka Art Fair 2019, invites the viewer into the world of the Deaf, rich with its own language and culture. The installation consisted of a series of 5 black and white photographs. Through ARIA, a cutting edge Augmented Reality (AR) App, the photographs transforms into silent animated videos of poetry interpreted in various Sign languages. In addition to the installation, the experience was augmented with Happenings peppered around the Sikka Art Fair venue at Al Fahidi Historical District. The Happenings, a collaboration with Sharjah based Falaj, consisted of mini performances directed by the artist using actors from the Deaf community. Culturally inclusive, Silent Conversations was an attempt to initiate conversations and bridge the gap between the Hearing and Deaf worlds.