David Najib Kasir

Exponent of Our Collapse <minus> the Factor of Hearts, 25”x25”, Oil & Acrylic on Panel, 2023

David Najib Kasir: Math of Four Minute Warnings

Opening Reception: Friday, March 7, 2025, 5-8pm

Math of Four Minute Warnings is an exhibition that interrogates the role Western media plays in constructing cultural narratives, while centering a caring and concerning lens on the destruction of Syria and its people through large-scale paintings. For Kasir, the works start from a personal place. “Iraq is my father’s country, and Syria is my mother’s as well as the second home of my youth. It is where my aunts, uncles and cousins were living. It is where there are buildings where I slept in and streets where I played tag and other games as a child. I’ve witnessed years of destruction of my countries from US invasion, with very little regard from Western mainstream media to civilian casualties.”

This personal experience fueled Kasir’s anger and frustration, and gives way to large-scale paintings that place the viewer in the center of the neighborhood experiencing destruction. The viewer is confronted with encounters between civilians and soldiers, families embracing each other as they look on at the fallen buildings and rubble.

Making visible what happens to civilians is the intent of “Math of Four Minute Warnings” and is placed in the larger context of cultural significance through the use of Arab design elements. As Kasir explains, “I entrap the Syrian landscapes in Arab mosaic patterns, not as a backdrop, but as a culture of people trying to hold up their structured environment as best as they can with little to no help from others.”

“Math of Four Minute Warnings" questions how much devastation can be endured before the Western media starts to care. Kasir shares “I worked to create an awareness and concern of wars and families who have lived in lands of conflict that have terrorized their lives for years. A country that has been ravaged by Soviet bombings and attacks but is not getting the media attention, care and humanity that a dominantly white country would receive. Through these works, I create an environment that invites viewers to stand in the middle of a neighborhood that once housed families. A neighborhood that no longer looks like the streets I played in as a child.”

Opening Reception, Friday, March 7, 5:00-8:00pm

• Exhibition dates: March 6 - 28, 2025

• Gallery hours: Thurs – Fri 2-6pm, Sat – Sun 12-4 pm

This program is supported by a grant from the Athena Fund.