Farah Al Qasimi: TAILSPIN takes its title from the featured video work, TAILSPIN. Filmed in between Michigan, West Texas, and the East Coast, the work traces the long-standing relationship between American industry, oil, car culture, and Arab immigration.
Told from the perspective of a jinn, or spirit, the work combines fictionalized storytelling, documentary-style footage, and real testimony to explore the complexities of identity-building in post-9/11 America. The film unfolds through auto shops, living rooms, restaurants, and the swamplands of the Rouge River, revealing layered histories of migration, industry, community, and belonging.
Farah Al Qasimi: TAILSPIN is organized by Drew Sawyer, Sondra Gilman Curator of Photography, and Kelly Long, Assistant Curator.
Whitney Museum of American Art