Cigarette butts, thread, fabric. 2013

Kerdahi’s collection of objects focuses on the non-monumental – objects which are inconspicuous but fundamental to her locus and context. They are otherwise forgettable, but in assembling them together, the works pronounce each object’s authority. In her most recent installation work, Yishrib (2013), she uses thousands of cigarette butts to construct an oversized DNA strand. Kerdahi airs cigarettes, worthy of recognition as symbols and subjects, through internal ruminations, sociopolitical observation, and historical reference.