Of Things to Come

In this collection of work, Yahya confronts the possibility of the end of the world, caused by forces beyond human control. The organic shapes of rocks seem to burn through the canvas, as if they are meteors entering the Earth’s atmosphere. In many of the works, the human face (the most identifiable feature) is obscured, either bleached out of recognition or obscured by the outline of one of these rocks. Yet life could only be created from elements forged through the repeated collapse of celestial bodies, which highlights

the chaos and enormity of time and space.

In contrast to this, Yahya explores the utter insignificance of human achievement no matter how remarkable, represented by scientists and pioneering thinkers who rejected established norms to make their own discoveries. Not only do we see da Vinci’s Vetruvian Man, fragmented, but also al-Biruni’s incredible insight in refuting Aristotelian physics (especially non-elliptic planetary motion) and discovering the circumference of the Earth. Perhaps most recognizable of all is Einstein’s ridicule of the establishment in the iconic photograph taken on his 72ndbirthday.

Yahya does not criticise or reject human achievement, rather he is reassured by its insignificance. He believes that environmental problems will only be solved naturally, and that man’s reluctance to consider his ultimate destruction is a form of nihilistic egotism.

While a direct meteor-strike could have disastrous consequences for life on Earth, this does not scare the artist, who instead views the apocalypse with detachment, as if it would be a form of cosmic justice.