Samia Halaby
Trees and The High Rising City
13 March - 28 April, 2011Press Release
Vernissage: March 13 at 7pm
Exhibition Dates: March 14 – April 28, 10am to 8pm
From March 13 until April 28, Ayyam Gallery Dubai (DIFC) will proudly present “Trees and The High Rising City,” the solo show of Palestinian artist Samia Halaby. Coinciding with the opening of Art Dubai, which will feature several large collages by Halaby, the exhibition will highlight recent works by the seminal artist.
At this stage in her oeuvre, Halaby has revisited many of the aesthetic breakthroughs that first distinguished her illustrious career. Yet, although her latest canvases draw from earlier experiments, she explores the angular perspective of architecture alongside the textures and variances found in nature, creating compositions that reflect the energy of bodies and masses in motion as they intersect and converge before the viewer—a daring, rarely seen, feat in abstraction.
This collection of late work speaks of an artist who has continuously searched for new ways to visually interpret the world around her. Following the success of her solo exhibition at Ayyam Gallery Beirut in September, which presented over a dozen canvases that hinted at the many periods of her painting, the artist has sought to dismantle the picture plane even further by bringing together elements that have never been simultaneously examined in her work before.
Describing the approach behind these new works Halaby explains, “I have taken a new direction in both subject and form. They were difficult paintings to create and they are hard ones to contemplate – devoid of sentiment, softness, or ornament. I painted with a combination of intuition and intellect, bold impulsiveness combined with careful deliberation. I combined soft and hard and I broke many of my own rules. I felt that I had no historical precedent and it was the first time in a long painting career that I proceeded with a fear of failure.”
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Born in Jerusalem in 1936, Samia Halaby is a leading Palestinian painter and scholar. An innovator of abstract painting in the Arab world for decades, today she still remains quite influential. Recognized as a major contributor to the school of abstraction in Arab art, Halaby’s work is housed in several museum collections worldwide, most notably the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, The British Museum, the Guggenheim Museum, The Art Institute of Chicago, and The Detroit Institute of Art.
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Since its founding in 2006, Ayyam Gallery has become one of the Middle East’s leading art spaces. With a selection of cutting-edge painting, sculpture and photography that represents some of the Arab world’s most exciting talent, the gallery has sought to promote the region's dynamic artists at home and abroad. For more information visit www.ayyamgallery.com.
Samia Halaby will be present on the opening day and during the first week of the exhibition. For interview with the artist or any further information, please contact us at +971 4 4392395 or email difc@ayyamgallery.com
Click here to access Press Kit with Press Release and Hi Res Images
Exhibition Press
A Fresh Look at the City, Gulf News - Weekend Review April 1, 2011Download PDF (3.3 MB)
Interview with Samia Halaby, ArtintheCity April 1, 2001
Download PDF (299 K)
Selected Works
SAH103(704) Samia HALABY 'Movements and Interruptions' 152 X 203 cm. Acrylic on Linen 2010
SAH104(705) Samia HALABY 'Three Squares Pyramid' 152 x 203 cm. Acrylic on Linen 2011
SAH105(706) Samia HALABY 'Pyramid' 152 x 203 cm. Acrylic on Linen 2011
SAH106(707) Samia HALABY 'Pedestrians and The High Rising City' 180 x 180 cm. Acrylic on Linen 2011
SAH107(708) Samia HALABY 'Lemon Tree' 180 x 180 cm. Acrylic on Linen 2011
SAH108(709) Samia HALABY 'Trees and The High Rising City' 200 x 200 cm. Acrylic on Linen 2011
SAH91(691) Samia HALABY 'Northern Migration' 153 x 182 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2010
SAH92(692) Samia HALABY 'White Moss' 153 x 182 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2010
SAH97(697) Samia HALABY 'Night Cactus' 180 x 180 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2010
SAH99(703) Samia HALABY 'Thunder Measuring Space' 152 x 203 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2010
SAH100(700) Samia HALABY 'Angels and Butterflies' 200 x 200 cm. Acrylic on Canvas 2010