Ayyam Gallery Dubai (11 Alserkal Avenue) is pleased to announce Ripples, the solo exhibition of painter Mohannad Orabi.
Ripples will highlight a new body of work by the Dubai-based Syrian artist. With his latest paintings, Orabi seeks to provide a counter image to the death and destruction that most Syrian artists are now widely recording. Over the past year, he has turned to his daily life for inspiration. For example, some of the doe-eyed children that have occupied his canvases since 2012 are depicted with details of his young daughter’s life, such as the bows and ribbons that often signal the initial stage of femininity. Focusing on everyday subject matter provides a creative outlet for the artist as he is deeply affected by the ongoing war in his native country.
In a number of paintings, the sparrows that first appeared in Orabi’s work a decade ago have returned to sit at the feet of buoyant children who are shown at peace in the world. According to the artist, this imagery invokes his memories of Syria before the war, whereas the built up surfaces of his canvases, which are covered in layers of sand, refer to his new life in the UAE and the years that have passed since he left Damascus. Glistening hues of paint mixed with sand represent the various environments of the Emirates. Different earth tones indicate desert landscapes; an abundance of white suggests the vividness of sundrenched streets; and cool blues recall the bordering sea.