Exhibition view “Monira Al Qadiri. Hero”
© Photo: Roman MärzMonira Al Qadiri intensively examines the social, cultural, and environmental dimensions of the oil industry. Her works shed light on the connections between crude oil as the leading fossil fuel of the twentieth century and the rise of consumer capitalism. Al Qadiri has developed several new groups of works for the Berlinische Galerie. The central motif of the exhibition is the oil tanker: Not only a gigantic means of transportation on the world's oceans, but also a symbol of power-political interests, global inequality, and ecological crises. Its monumental presence tells of an industry that enables a comfortable lifestyle while simultaneously destroying the planet. Despite the emerging shift towards renewable energies, the toxic legacy of oil continues to be felt: in the sea and in the air, in cities, infrastructures, and even in our bodies.
The SS Murex series (2023 ) marks the start of the exhibition: porthole-shaped light boxes display archive images of historic oil tankers, which are all named Murex—after a type of snail that was once a popular decorative object in the Victorian era. This name was given to one of the first modern tankers back in 1892; it was built by an oil company that originated from a family business in the seashell trade. In the decades that followed, hundreds of oil tankers were named after seashells and snail species.
The centrepiece of the main room is the monumental mural Hero, which portrays the side view of a gigantic oil tanker in dramatic shades of black and red. It radiates industrial power—simultaneously captivating and threatening—and provides a commentary on the strategic significance of crude oil in the geopolitical power structure.
At the end of this exhibition space, the bow of a tanker emerges as a sculptural element: Bulbous Bow (2025), a large-format fibreglass sculpture, echoes the characteristic shape of the so-called bulbous bow—a feat of technical engineering that reduces a ship’s water resistance and improves its seaworthiness.
For the work Seasons in Hell (2025), eleven adapted tanker models are distributed around the room in a wave formation and function as narrators of geological and human history.
The exhibition concludes with the new video work Oh Body of Mine (2025, 10 min.), in which Al Qadiri takes a closer look at a ship-breaking yard for decommissioned super-tankers in Bangladesh. Dismantling these ships is an industry that is primarily located in countries of the so-called Global South. The majority of European ships are dismantled in the three largest ship-breaking yards, which are found in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Due to the numerous toxic substances involved, this is a complex and dangerous process that also results in the social and environmental costs being exported, too. Accompanied by an adaptation of Arthur Rimbaud’s poem ‘The Drunken Boat’ (1871), Al Qadiri’s images depict apocalyptic-looking scenes and serve as a sombre conclusion to this multifaceted installation.
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Do you have any other questions about accessibility? Andreas Krüger, officer accessibility and inclusion, will be happy to answer them via e-mail krueger@berlinischegalerie.de or via phone +49 (0)30-789 02-832.
Monira Al Qadiri
© Photo: Harry SchnitgerMonira Al Qadiri (*1983 in Senegal) grew up in Kuwait. She completed her doctorate in Japan and currently lives in Berlin. Her work has been featured in major international exhibitions, including the Venice Biennale "The Milk of Dreams" (2022), and in solo shows such as "Mutant Passages" at Kunsthaus Bregenz (2023), "The Archaeology of Beasts" at BOZAR Brussels (2024), and "Deep Fate" at the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma in Helsinki (2025).
