Jackie Salloum

“Arabs like you’ve never seen them before…unless you’re an Arab”
Jacqueline Salloum’s Arab-A-Go-Go
by Jennifer S. Musawwir

It is an honor to have this unique opportunity to introduce Jacqueline Salloum to the Salad Days exhibition at Artists Space with the inclusion of her two-minute video, Arabs-A-Go-Go, 2003. As a recent graduate of New York University’s MFA program, Salloum’s work with pop culture, politics and Middle Eastern identities/misconceptions in video, collage and mixed media pieces was brought to my attention through word of mouth. I would like to preface with the fact that Salloum and I have neither met nor conducted a studio visit in preparation for this exhibition due to the artist’s summer residency in Palestine. However, based on recommendations and the artist’s website, I recognized the strengths of this emerging artist’s work and believe that she is the perfect artist to represent my curatorial contribution to this eclectic exhibition.
The video Arabs-A-Go-Go compliments Salad Days’s fresh exposure of emerging artists as well as its taking place at the height of summer when everything is bright, vibrant and alive. This lively video montage of Middle Eastern films from the 1930’s through 70’s is paired with an equally invigorating soundtrack of the song “Don’t Go Far” by the popular Arabic singer Latifa. The two minutes of film footage is a thoughtful orchestration of clips depicting stylish, beautiful and young Arabs in both western and Middle Eastern clothing. These vintage video clips inspire a nostalgic glimpse back into the popular culture of generations past within the Arabic world. Much like Bollywood films, groups of young Arabs dance on beaches, in parks or in clubs. There are also clips that suggest suspense, romance and drama. Overall, the spirit of Arabs-A-Go-Go is seductive and optimistic in its depiction of carefree, energetic and youthful individuals.

Salloum’s video is contrary to the western constructions and global distribution of exaggerated and exhausted representations of Middle Eastern people. From an American perspective, perceptions of Arabic people are often polluted with isolated images of women covered head to toe or men bearing arms aimed at the West perpetuating suffocating stereotypes of Arabic populations across the globe. These stereotypes are in complete contrast to the playfulness of American pop culture i.e. teen movies, MTV, and our own infatuation with youth and excess. The juxtaposition of fun-loving, all-American prototypes with the sullen and aggressive image of Arabs emphasizes the extreme differences between East and West. Whether it is romantic or ignorant, reliance on these conflicting stereotypes enable the psychological maintenance of barriers/borders between different cultures. However, youth is universal. Salloum’s video is a reminder that lighthearted, popular culture occurs around the globe and despite regional/ethnic variations, they all share the characteristic youthful and good-humored elements of American pop culture. Arabs-A-Go-Go provokes viewers to exhale anxieties they may feel about Arabs and the Middle East with the provision of alternative representations.