ONE BLOOD, Beirut 2012
Hady Sy
2e Bureau
Sing the song of life, offering a gift
In times long past, in the fury of movements so extreme that they could crush the heart of the earth and bodies held prisoner there, in the deafening noise of bombs and the wily whistling of shrapnel rushing to pierce flesh, in the thuds and echoes of bodies lying tangled by the roadside, as well as the suffering and joy of new life, in the wonders accomplished to revive a body and defy death, hiding there is a precious element, a universal, timeless principle of life – blood. The principle may be invisible, but is revealed in birth, or death. It expresses the unique mark of the individual and the unique mark of the greater community of mankind. It is a link both universal and essential for each and every being; yet so much blood has been shed for futile and unjust reasons, because of human folly, because of the brutality of nature. Hady Sy contemplated this treasure enjoyed by every member of the human race, and wished to make it visible, for to disregard blood would be a blow for us all, whereas a tribute to blood could only enhance our dignity.
As an established photographer and artist, Hady Sy is familiar with the mysterious alchemy capable of rendering visible things invisible, able to bring forth a latent image so patiently composed and so promptly revealed, and is only too aware that things prodigious may be concealed, lying in wait. Hady Sy devised the idea of taking pictures of blood donated, and to combine these with photographic portraits of the donors.
His idea was to uncover the mystery of blood, to let blood speak for itself, defending its own arguments and thereby convincing skeptics. Conscious of his own mixed blood, with his own experience of the pain of being different during civil strife in Beirut – the city that has suffered so, and which epitomizes all conflict in the world – he has shown that our blood, our different bloods, our bodies, are one; and with great affection and sorrow, he has been there with his sister as the blood disorder affecting her gradually progresses. The intention was not to reveal times of despair, but to show times of hope, not times when life is taken away, but times when life is given so generously.
Preview
He submitted his plan for the project now named ONE BLOOD, Beirut 2012 to international organizations involved in blood donation, and embarked on an extensive journey taking him to many destinations, including Greenland, the Amazon, Nepal and Africa, traveling with his own photography studio to take pictures, in daylight, of all the donors who have voluntarily and spontaneously given their blood, donating an essential part of their being.
The remarkable collection of work from across the world forms a subtle and invaluable report showing individuals in their everyday context: a farmer in Nepal, a monk in Bhutan, a banker in Lebanon, a man searching for gold in the Amazon, a cleaning lady in the Emirates and also intellectuals, a shady character in Brazil and a musician in Australia. This obviously covers a range of costumes and customs, of original poses contrasting with conventional models, showing situations that are quite simple, or on the contrary quite elaborate, featuring expressions that convey the full gamut of human emotions, while the scene in the background is determined by the vicissitudes of weather and natural light.
All the donors consented to be part of the exercise, showing their blood, whether a bag or just a drop, posing for the photographer and answering an ID questionnaire.
The exhibit is presented as a semi-circular installation: the portraits (most of them black & white) on one side, and the (color) photos of the blood on the other, the two elements personifying each model thus set back to back.
Agnès de Gouvion Saint-Cyr. Curator of the exhibition
Agents for Hady Sy: 2e Bureau and Ethan Cohen Fine Arts.
Special thanks to: Bank Audi sal, Audi Saradar Group. The City of Beirut, the Lebanese Ministry of Culture, Unesco Palais, the Nobel Peace Center, and Viva Rio. Johns Hopkins-affiliated Clemenceau Medical Center, Beirut, EFS (Etablissement Français du Sang – French blood donation organization), Blood Banken Oslo, Blood Transfusion Center, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province (China), CNTS (Centre National de Transfusion Sanguine, National blood transfusion center, Senegal), and the Japanese Red Cross Society. Booz & Company, Intramuro.
