Art Basel Qatar - In The Assembly Of Lovers

English description provided by the architects.

Sumayya Vally, Counterspace pays homage to lost gathering spaces across the Muslim world at the inaugural Art Basel Qatar.

Curated by Egyptian artist Wael Shawky, the fair explores the theme 'Becoming' – a meditation on humanity's ongoing transformation and the evolving systems that shape how we live, believe, and create meaning.

Drawing from a constellation of sites, from the courtyards of Córdoba to the gardens of Gaza, from Kashmir's riverfronts to the stoeps of District Six and the Msheireb in Qatar, the work weaves together memory, architecture, and collective presence.

"In the Assembly of Lovers is rooted in a longing for collective spaces that have been lost. By assembling fragments from places across the Muslim world, the installation gestures toward a shared architectural memory—one that insists on gathering as an act of love, hope, and resistance," says Sumayya Vally.

Acknowledging the majlis as one of the most enduring spatial institutions within Islamic civilization, embodying the seamless integration of architectural form, social function, and spiritual principle, the work references its spatial logic.

Conceived as a living ground for encounter, rather than a fixed, static structure, In the Assembly of Lovers presents an architecture in flux:

Its rhythm, atmosphere, and tempo shift with each gathering, emphasizing architecture as something activated by the presence of the people who inhabit it.

Constructed from plywood and micro cement, the installation is accompanied by an eight-channel sound work. Together, material and sound create a space that is at once intimate and collective, grounded and ephemeral.