Poem of Nine Verses
- Artist: Saloua Raouda Choucair
- Date: 1966–8
- Medium: Aluminium
- Dimensions: object: 270 x 210 x 70 mm
- Museum: Tate Modern
- Collection record: Tate Modern website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is "Poem of Nine Verses" by Saloua Raouda Choucair. Made between 1966 and 1968, it’s a vertical arrangement of nine aluminium rectangles that interlock like verses in a poem. Each piece can stand alone, but together they form a rhythmic structure inspired by Sufi poetry and geometric abstraction. Choucair was blending Islamic aesthetics with the modernist language of her Paris training, creating a visual meter that feels both independent and connected. The aluminium panels were first carved in wood in Beirut, then cast to give the work its bright, reflective surface. When you move around the sculpture, you can almost feel how each “verse” shifts, echoing the flexibility of poetry itself.
See it in person
Poem of Nine Verses is in the collection of Tate Modern on Bankside, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
