Safwan Dahoul

Biography

Born in Hama, Syria in 1961, Safwan Dahoul is among the highest grossing Middle Eastern artists to date with record-breaking auction sales and blockbuster shows that have made his paintings popular with regional and international collectors alike.

After graduating from the Faculty of Fines Arts in Damascus at the top of his class in 1983, Dahoul went on to receive a scholarship to study abroad from the Ministry of Higher Education in 1987. Choosing to travel to Belgium due to its rich artistic heritage, particularly its 16th century Flemish school of painting, he obtained a doctorate from the Higher Institute of Plastic Arts in Mons in 1997. Since then he has participated in international art fairs and individual and collective exhibitions throughout the Middle East, Europe and the US.

As Dahoul’s art is undeterred by national borders, his painting-style is inspired by a vast range of art history including ancient Assyrian and Pharaonic art, and European masters, such as Hieronymus Bosch and Pieter Bruegal the Elder. Elements of international Modernism and Post-war painting such as the Cubist inspired monumentality of Picasso and the sociopolitical foreboding of Francis Bacon can also be detected. Yet the Syrian artist’s canvases demonstrate a profound originality, namely with the formation of his aesthetic through the detailed exploration of a reoccurring female subject in his widely-recognized “Dream” series, a continuous body of work that has evolved since 1982.

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Artist Press

Safwan DAHOUL, l'agenda  January 2011

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Safwan DAHOUL "Silent Elegance", Canvas Magazine  May 2008

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"Narcissism is a must for a Successful Artist", Forward Magazine  March 2008

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Safwan DAHOUL "Master of Dreams", Syria Today  November 2007

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Safwan DAHOUL, What's On  May 2007

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Artist Exhibitions

Safwan Dahoul, Still Dreaming  17 Jan - 28 Feb, 2011
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Safwan Dahoul and Nadim Karam, at Ayyam Gallery, Beirut  9 Oct - 5 Dec, 2009
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Black vs Colour  16 Oct - 30 Nov, 2008
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Safwan Dahoul Solo Show  15 Mar - 17 Apr, 2008
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Artist Publications

Safwan Dahoul
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Safwan Dahoul
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Ayyam Editions

Safwan Dahoul
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Selected Works

Dream29 Safwan DAHOUL 'Dream 29' 190 X 190 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2010

Dream48 Safwan Dahoul 'Dream 48' 193 X 232 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2011

Dream50 Safwan DAHOUL 'Dream 50' 193 X 232 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2011