Monira Al Qadiri’s multidisciplinary practice is rooted in the culture and histories of the Persian Gulf. Her works examine the region’s complex past and circumstances that have contributed to rapid change. In Holy Quarter, a film and sculptural installation, she explores the blending of myth and purported fact. The film centers on the exploits of British explorer Harry St. John Philby, who journeyed to the “Empty Quarter” of the Arabian Peninsula in the 1930s in search of the legendary lost region of Ubar, described in local lore as having been destroyed by divine punishment. Rather than discovering this ancient civilization, Philby encountered remnants of a dramatic meteorite strike, which formed black glass “pearls” from melted sand. Juxtaposed with Al Qadiri’s sculptural evocations of these pearls, the film is narrated by the spirit of the meteor, which warns of impending ecological disaster at the hands of man while offering hope for the future through collective efforts at reversal.