Barrada’s work combines the strategies of the documentary film with the metaphorical approach to imagery in her photographic, installation and sculptural work. Yto Barrada: Klaatu Barrada Nikto remains on View at the Aspen Art Museum, Colorado, USA until 25th November 2018.
Barrada’s exhibition title, Klaatu Barrada Nikto, is inspired by a key line in the 1951 science-fiction film The Day the Earth Stood Still. The untranslatable phrase was adapted by Barrada as an entry point for her AAM exhibition—a constellation of works that directly addresses the shifting notions of authenticity and tradition. The exhibition reflects Barrada’s ongoing research into displacement and dislocation, modes of education, and forms of abstraction.