Youssef Abdelke Nasser Hussein Abdallah Murad Yaser Safi Mounir Shaarani Edward Shahda Fadi Yazigi
MEEM EDITIONS
MEEM EDITIONS
This catalogue is published in conjunction with the Art Syria exhibition held at Meem Gallery, Dubai, 21 October – 24 November 2013. Published in 2013. © © © © © © © © © © ©
Youssef Abdelke Nasser Hussein Abdallah Murad Yaser Safi Mounir Shaarani Edward Shahda Fadi Yazigi Charles Pocock Meagan Kelly Horsman Meem Gallery Art Advisory Associates Ltd.
All works by artists © 2013 the artists Used by permission. All rights reserved. ISBN 978-1-907051-31-9 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library, Library of Congress, Bibliothèque National de France, Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Al Noor Institute. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means; electronic, mechanical, photocopying, and recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the publishers. Art Direction and Design by Noura Haggag of Meem Gallery Edited by Meagan Kelly Horsman and Noura Haggag of Meem Gallery Photography by Mathew Lazarus Published by the Publications Department of Meem with Art Advisory Associates Ltd. Meem Gallery P.O. Box 290 Dubai, United Arab Emirates Tel: +971 4 3477883 www.meemartgallery.com
CONTENTS Foreword 10 Charles Pocock Art Syria 12 Meagan Kelly Horsman CVs 14 Paintings 24
FOREWORD It is often said that the art produced today should relate to the society we are currently living in; art should be a statement of our time. Meem Gallery’s exhibition, Art Syria, reflects this notion as it relates directly to the artists’ personal experiences within Syria today. Our aim is to bring closer attention to what is happening in Syria to a wider audience, and to give the artists a new platform to exhibit their work. Since 2010, Meem has initiated a programme looking at art from across the Middle East, with exhibitions like Art Sudan, Art Palestine, Art Morocco and Art in Iraq Today. Art Syria is an essential part of Meem’s ongoing programme dedicated to promoting creative talent in the Middle East. It is the first public exhibition at Meem devoted to Syrian art. Previously, during Abu Dhabi Art, the gallery exhibited key works by the modern Syrian masters Louay Kayyali and Fateh Moudarres; however, this is the first comprehensive display dedicated to the work of contemporary Syrian artists. Art Syria is an exhibition that reflects what is happening today, depicting the reality of the situation within Syria through the eyes of artists—acting as an alternative means of documenting the bloodshed and turmoil 10
experienced by the Syrian people today. The work is a testament to humanity and the ability to overcome the horrors of war through art. What I find incredible is that the work has come out of a country that is in the throws of one of the most violent civil wars in recent times. It has been produced by incredibly creative artists based within Syria, who refuse to give up. As stated by Hala Abdallah, the wife of Youssef Abdelke, to Reuters shortly after his arrest in July 2013: ‘Youssef had made a decision to resist having to leave Syria again. He refused to seek French citizenship when he was in France, he used to say that if someone sees a fire in his house he will try to extinguish it, not run away.’ In November 2011, I sat down with Yaser Safi and Nasser Hussein in Downtown Beirut, after an introduction by Dia Azzawi—while Dia and I were setting up Art in Iraq Today, a co-curated project, at the Beirut Exhibition Center. At that point we were discussing a joint show with Yaser Safi and Nasser Hussein. Because of the civil war in Syria, communication was halted; however, a few months later, in March 2012, an exhibition was launched at Mashrabia Gallery in Cairo, co-curated by Mounir Shaarani and Stefania Angarano, called Artists from Today’s Syria,
which included the work of Youssef Abdelke, Heba Akkad, Assem Al-Basha, Tarek Boteihy, Nasser Hussein, Fadi Yazigi, Edward Shahda, Yaser Safi, Abdallah Murad, and Mounir Shaarani. In June 2012 we spoke to Yaser and suggested bringing available elements of this exhibition to Dubai in 2013. The civil war worsened and there was silence. Then one year later, in June 2013, we were informed that the project was back on schedule; all the works were being put together for shipment to Dubai and we were expected to receive them in July 2013. Two weeks after the works had been shipped from Damascus in July, one of the exhibiting artists, Youssef Abdelke was arrested for his political views by the Assad regime and then released one month later. ‘One cannot but deplore and condemn the arrest of Youssef Abdelke and his two comrades. This mentality, which treats the holder of an opinion as a criminal, has damaged Arab humanity and culture,’ Adonis, a fellow Syrian who is the Arab world’s leading modernist poet, told Reuters following the arrest of the artist. Depicting the reality of the situation is a key responsibility of the artists, and one that they have undertaken wholeheartedly. I cannot thank enough the artists participating in Art Syria: Youssef Abdelke, Fadi Yazigi, Mounir Sharaani, Abdallah Murad, Yaser Safi, Nasser Hussein and Edward Shahda. You have produced work that is all-inspiring and under the most difficult of circumstances. I would also like to thank Dia Azzawi for introducing me to Yaser Safi and Nasser Hussein back in 2011, to Yaser Safi for coordinating all aspects of this project, to
Kaissar Rizkallah and Badr El Hage for their support with this project and to Stephania Angarano and Mounir Shaarani for initiating the original project in Cairo in March 2012. Charles Pocock Managing Director, Meem Gallery Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society Doha 9 October 2013
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ART SYRIA The turmoil taking place today in Syria needs little introduction. Our TV screens and newspapers are filled with horrific images of suffering and plight; images of refugee camps, destroyed cities and the dispossessed. What may be surprising however, is the knowledge that artists are standing their ground and still creating works in this hostile climate; embodying the hope of the Syrian people to carry on their long history of artistic culture and the willingness to survive. Meem Gallery, with the assistance of exhibiting artist Yaser Safi, bring together the works of Youssef Abdelke, Nasser Hussein, Abdallah Murad, Yaser Safi, Mounir Shaarani, Edward Shahda and Fadi Yazigi in Art Syria. All the works in this exhibition have been created in the past three years, documenting each artist’s personal interpretation of the civil war that has plagued the Syrian people for the past three years. Utilizing their own techniques and inspirations to create art during this period, each artist has stayed true to their style whilst exploring a new geographical and metaphorical landscape in their work. Yaser Safi, born Syria 1976, has contributed three outstanding works to the exhibition, all works on canvas in his well-known style. The 12
works feature figurative elements created in an intentionally child-like manner, with a deep, dark colour palette on canvas. The child-like overall imagery creates a sense of pleasantry for the viewer, however upon closer inspection the works’ subject matter reflects its darker palette, visual imagery from the Syrian landscape coming through, taking form in a tank, a gun, a soldier. Fadi Yazigi utilizes a distinctive style; halfformed creatures and humanistic figures peer out of the work to the viewer, representing the ‘marginalized and unhappy’. Yazigi has chosen to create these particular works on rice paper, in black and white or with minimal use of colour, which adds a feeling of clarity and fragility to the work, daring the viewer to reach out to these distorted figures. The macabre and dark focus continues on in the work of Youssef Abdelke. As one of Syria’s foremost painters, recently imprisoned by the regime for over a month for his political views and activism, Meem Gallery is delighted to include three of his works in Art Syria. Abdelke is well known for his hyperrealistic works on paper, executed in charcoal that often depict intriguing still lifes. However, rather than the ubiquitous bowl of fruit that the genre of the ‘still life’ brings to mind,
here Abdelke portrays skulls, figures, cages and body parts in stoic shades of grey. The themes of life and death are clear in these particular works, from the symbolic use of lilies to uncharacteristic and violent bright dashes of red across the work. It is indeed impossible to ignore the violence that is so prevalent in these more recent works. Nasser Hussein joins the exhibition showing three works, acrylic works on canvas in muted, earth tones. These Untitled works utilize human and animal imagery immersed in a smooth, barren background. Hussein, Yazigi, Abdelke and Safi all make figurative stylistic choices in their practice – choosing to voice their feelings and opinions in a certain way. The next three artists in the show: Abdallah Murad, Edward Shahda and Mounir Shaarani choose to utilize a more abstracted manner of expression. Edward Shahda’s works show both an interest in the figurative and in the abstract – the canvas separated into simple sections of colour and texture, an image almost seemingly inserted into the space. A figure, dual faced, holding a small, sharp weapon. Abdallah Murad’s works hail from 2010 and 2011 respectively, marking the beginning of the crisis in Syria. Can one view these works in a different light? Murad employs a complex use of colour and texture in these abstracted, bold works, allowing the viewer to deconstruct them positively. Mounir Shaarani’s works also give an element of hope and positivity to the viewer. Free Woman and Homeland showcase his archetypal style, innovative calligraphic workmanship, alongside the feeling of homage to Syria found in the titles of these pieces.
Art Syria explores the concerns and output of Syrian artists during the past three years – times of turmoil, uncertainty and strife. The works comprising this exhibition show the diversity and skill of Syrian art and the artists still living and working in Syria today. Meagan Kelly Horsman Business Development Director, Meem Gallery
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CVS YOUSSEF ABDELKE Born in 1951, Qamishli EDUCATION
2006 Henki Hall, Helsinki
1989 Doctorate in Plastic Arts, Université Paris VIII, Paris
2005 Khan Asaad Pasha, Atassi Gallery, Damascus Dar Al Funoon, Kuwait
1986 Diploma in Etching, École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris
2004 Akhnatoun Gallery, Cairo
1976 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Damascus University, Damascus Solo Exhibitions
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2007 Ayyam Gallery, Damascus
2003 Dar Al-Anda Gallery, Amman 6th Chamalières International Triennial for Etching, Chamalières Prebendale Gallery, Saint Paul
2010 Al-Shaab Gallery, Homs Claude Lemand Gallery, Paris
2002 L’Atelier Art Gallery, Alexandria Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo Claude Lemand Gallery, Paris
2009 Dar Al-Anda Gallery, Amman
2001 Al Riwaq Art Gallery, Manama
2000 Hall of Faculty of Law, Sfax
1973 Al-Houriya Hall, Damascus
1999 Green Art Gallery, Dubai Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo
Group Exhibitions
1998 Atassi Gallery, Damascus 1997 Kallysté Gallery, Tunis 1995 Atassi Gallery, Damascus 2nd International Sharjah Biennial, Sharjah Masrah Beirut, Beirut 1993 Al-Balqa’ Gallery, Amman 1992 Aram Gallery, Damascus 1989 Al-Alif Gallery, Tunis 1988 L’Atelier Gallery, Cairo 1987 Ornina Gallery, Damascus 1978 Al-Shaab Gallery, Damascus 1974 Al-Shaab Gallery, Damascus
2013 Art Syria, Meem Gallery, Dubai 2012 Artists from Today’s Syria, Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo 2009 Exchanging Views, Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris Exchanging Views, National Museum of Damascus, Damascus 2008 Grand Opening, Ayyam Gallery, Dubai Art and Design Art Fair New York, Ayyam Gallery, New York 2007 Salon d’Automne, Paris 2006 Grand Opening, Ayyam Gallery, Damascus Graphic Arts Symposium, Khartoum 2005 Imagining the Book Biennial, Bibliotheca of Alexandria, Alexandria 2003 Oro Fine Art Gallery, Geneva Syrian Contemporary Art Exhibtion, Leiden
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2002 Imagining the Book Biennial, Bibliotheca of Alexandria, Alexandria 2001 Arabic Ateliers Exhibition, Beirut Arabic Ateliers Exhibition, Damscus 5th International Sharjah Biennial, Sharjah The 8 th International Cairo Biennial, Cairo 2000 5 th Chamalières International Triennial for Etching, Chamalières 1998 8 Arab Artists, Arabesque Gallery, Heidelberg 1997 Cracovia International Biennial for Etching, Kraków 4 th Chamalières International Triennial for Etching, Chamalières 1995 Collective exhibition with Maher Al-Baroudi, Lyon 7 th International Etching Biennial, Taiwan 1994 3 rd Chamalières International Triennial for Etching, Chamalières 6 Syrian Artists, Grambihler Gallery, Paris 1993 1 st International Egypt Triennial for Graphic Art, Cairo
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1991 6 Syrian Artists, Monika Beck Gallery, Hamburg 5th International Etching Biennial, Taiwan 1990 5 Artists, Al Muntada Gallery, Beirut 1988 Arab Graphic Art Exhibition, London 6 th International Etching Biennial, Den L’bain, Paris 1987 One Painting, Cairo Arab Graphic Art, Paris Photography and Drawing, Wedendam Gallery, Berlin French Artist’s Salon, Paris International Graphic Triennial, Berlin 1986 15 Arab Artists, Paris 5 th International Etching Biennial, Den L’bain, Paris 1985 L’Outeru Gallery, Paris 1976 International Graphic Triennial, Berlin 1974 1 st Arab Triennial, Baghdad 1973 Joint exhibition with Said Al Taha, Damascus
Born in 1971, Aleppo
2012 Artists from Today’s Syria, Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo
Education
ABDALLAH MURAD
2004–06 Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf
Born in 1944, Homs
NASSER HUSSEIN
2003–04 Universität Siegen, Siegen 1997 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Damascus University, Damascus Solo Exhibitions 2008 Karim Gallery, Amman Atassi Gallery, Damascus 2006 Mustafa Ali Gallery, Damascus 2004 Cultural Department of Bonn, Bonn Museum of Bad Berleburg, BadBerleburg 2001 The 8th International Cairo Biennial, Cairo Latakia Biennial, Latakia Ishtar Gallery, Damascus Group Exhibitions 2013 Art Syria, Meem Gallery, Dubai
Education 1970 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Damascus University, Damascus Solo Exhibitions 2004 Zawaya Gallery, Homs 2003 Art and Taking Refuge, The High Commission for Refugees, Damascus 2000 French Cultural Center, Damascus 1995 Alwan Gallery, Beirut 1994 Atassi Gallery, Damascus 1992 Alwan Gallery, Beirut 1991 6 artists from Syria, Beirut 6 artists from Syria, Tripoli
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1989 Artists from Syria, Al Muntada Gallery, Beirut
2001 ARTUEL, Beirut
1988 The European and Asian Biennale, Turkey
1999 ARTUEL, Beirut Syrian Workshop, UNESCO Palace, Beirut
1984 Greeting to Miro and Picasso, Spanish Cultural Center, Damascus 1983 Al-Shaab Gallery, Damascus
1971 Group 10, Damascus
1982 Artistic Gathering, Bulgaria
YASER SAFI
1980 Arab Cultural Center, Damascus 1976 Arab Cultural Center, Damascus 1973 Ornina Gallery, Damascus Group Exhibitions 2013 Art Syria, Meem Gallery, Dubai 2012 Artists from Today’s Syria, Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo 2002 European Art Exhibition, Geneva The Mediterranean Biennale for Arts, Tunis
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1997 3rd International Sharjah Biennial, Sharjah
Born in 1976, Qamishli Education 1999 Diploma of Superior Studies in Graphic Art, Damascus University, Damascus 1997 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Damascus University, Damascus Solo Exhibitions 2007 Portrait Fine Art Gallery, Cairo The Majlis Gallery, Dubai 2005 Zara Gallery, Amman 2002 Notus Gallery, Brussels
1999 French Cultural Center, Damascus
2001 Beit Al Mada for Arts and Culture, Damascus
Group Exhibitions
2000 5 th World Triennial of the Stamp and the Original Engraving, Chamalières 5 Young Artists, Kozah Gallery, Damascus
2013 Art Syria, Meem Gallery, Dubai 2012 Artists from Today’s Syria, Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo 2008 Art and Antiques Art Fair, Ayyam Gallery, Dubai Grand Opening, Ayyam Gallery, Dubai Art and Design Art Fair New York, Ayyam Gallery, New York 2007 Biennal Sarsel, Paris 7 th World Triennial of the Stamp and the Original Engraving, Chamalières 2006 Belad Al-Sham Gallery, Aleppo 2004 Etching and Sculpture, Atelier Gallery, Roma 2003 Etching and Sculpture, Zara Gallery, Amman 6 th World Triennial of the Stamp and the Original Engraving, Chamalières 2002 4 Syrian Artists, Zara Gallery, Amman
Awards 2001 First Place, Second Syrian Youth Exhibition, Damascus Second Place, Biennale Latakkia, Latakkia 2000 Honour Award, Instituto Cervantes, Damascus MOUNIR SHAARANI Born in 1952, Syria Education 1977 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Damascus University, Damascus Solo Exhibitions 2008 Ayyam Gallery, Damascus 2007 Dar Al-Anda Gallery, Amman 2006 Al-Jezirah Art Center, Cairo
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International Center for Poetry, Marseille Word into Art, British Museum, London Art Space Gallery, Dubai
1996 Rewaq Belal Gallery, Tunis Cairo Atelier, Cairo
2005 St Johns College, Oxford Atassi Gallery, Damascus
1995 Al Sayid Gallery, Damascus
2004 Green Art Gallery, Dubai 2002 Green Art Gallery, Dubai Al-Sham Gallery, Aleppo Al-Rouaq Al Baladi, Sfax Monza House, Muscat Al-Jezirah Art Center, Cairo 2001 Audiovisual Exhibition, Sharjah Art Museum, Sharjah Ishtar Gallery, Damascus 1999 Cairo Atelier, Cairo Opera House, Cairo Albareh Art Gallery, Manama Dream Hill, Berlin 1998 Cairo-Berlin Gallery, Cairo Reitberq Museum, Zurich, Switzerland Shawqi Museum, Cairo 1997 Thervantes Center, Cairo
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1994-1995 International Red Cross, Morocco, Tunis and Jordan 1994 Cultural Center, Abu Dhabi 1993 Cairo Atelier, Cairo 1992 Cairo Atelier, Cairo French Cultural Center, Cairo Dar Al-Fonoun, Tunis 1990 Cairo Atelier, Cairo 1988 Alif Hall, Tunis Bourgiba Center, Tunis 1987 Cairo Atelier, Cairo Al Sawi Hall, Cairo Group Exhibitions 2013 Art Syria, Meem Gallery, Dubai
2012 Artists from Today’s Syria, Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo 2011 Al-Shaab Gallery, Homs Freedom and Innovation, Casa Arabe, Madrid and Cordoba
2006 Atassi Gallery, Damascus 2002 Atelier Fateh Al Moudarres, Damascus 1995 Ishtar Gallery, Damascus
2010 Rafia Gallery, Damascus
1992 Stavropol, Russia
2009 Ayyam Gallery, Damascus
1983 Damascus Military Housing Foundation, Damascus
Awards 2002 Modernization Award, 1st International Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial, Sharjah EDWARD SHAHDA Born in 1952, Damascus Education 1976 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Damascus University, Damascus Solo exhibitions 2011 To Mahmoud Darwish, Tajalliyat Art Gallery, Damascus 2008 Memory Revival, Damascus
1981 Russian Cultural Center, Damascus Group exhibitions 2013 Art Syria, Meem Gallery, Dubai 2012 Artists from Today’s Syria, Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo 2009 Damascus Seen by Paris, National Museum, Damascus 2008 3rd Beijing International Art Biennale, Beijing 5 Syrian Artists, Fort Hamilton Gallery, New York Camel Arts Gallery opening exhibition Damascus seen by Paris, Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris
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2005 4 Artists, Istanbul Little Painting, Canada 2nd Beijing International Art Biennale, Beijing
Solo Exhibitions
2004 Dar Culture and Art Gallery, Drousha The Little Painting, Souad Issawi Gallery, Amman
2005 Ishtar Gallery, Damascus Zara Gallery, Amman
2003 Europe Art, Geneva 2001 Women and War, Red Cross, Damascus 1998 Life’s Theater, French Cultural Center, Damascus 1996 Al-Khanji Gallery, Aleppo Al-Shaab Gallery, Homs 1992 Stavropol, Russia 1984 Al-Shaab Gallery, Damascus FADI YAZIGI Born in 1966, Latakia Education 1984–1988 Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture, Damascus University, Damascus
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2006 Albareh Art Gallery, Manama
2004 Dar Al-Anda Gallery, Amman 2002 French Cultural Centre, Damascus 2001 Dar Al-Anda Gallery, Amman 1998 IFEAD, French Institute for Arabic Studies, Damascus 1996 Ishtar Gallery, Damascus 1995 Al Madina Theater, Beirut 1994 Ishtar Gallery, Damascus Al Khanji Gallery, Aleppo 1993 American University of Beirut, Beirut Ishtar Gallery, Damascus
Group Exhibitions 2013 Art Syria, Meem Gallery, Dubai 2012 Artists from Today’s Syria, Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo
1995 Lebanese Embassy Exhibition, Athens 1992–2000 National Museum Fall Exhibition, Damascus
2006 Europe Art Expo, Geneva Ishtar Gallery, Damascus French Cultural Centre, Damascus 2003 Europe Art Expo, Geneva Gallery Amber, Leiden 2002 Art Sud, Paris 2001 Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry 2000 Dead Horse Gallery, Cleveland Jerusalem Fund, Washington, D.C. Artists Museum Gallery Washington, D.C. 1999 4th International Sharjah Biennial, Sharjah International Red Cross Exhibition, Damascus The Holly Cross Church, Damascus 1998 Maronite Church, Damascus 1997 Latakia Biennial, Latakia
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PAINTINGS
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YOUSSEF ABDELKE Untitled (2010) Charcoal on paper 100 * 50 cm 26
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YOUSSEF ABDELKE Untitled (2013) Charcoal on paper 100 * 100 cm 28
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YOUSSEF ABDELKE Untitled (2013) Charcoal on paper 100 * 100 cm 30
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NASSER HUSSEIN Untitled (2011) Acrylic on canvas 120 * 120 cm 32
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NASSER HUSSEIN Untitled (2012) Acrylic on canvas 120 * 120 cm 34
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NASSER HUSSEIN Untitled (2012) Acrylic on canvas 100 * 80 cm 36
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ABDALLAH MURAD Composition (2010) Mixed media on canvas 120 * 120 cm 38
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ABDALLAH MURAD Composition (2011) Mixed media on canvas 120 * 120 cm 40
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ABDALLAH MURAD Composition (2011) Mixed media on canvas 130 * 97 cm 42
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YASER SAFI Boxer (2013) Acrylic on canvas 120 * 100 cm 44
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YASER SAFI I Hate Helicoptors (2012) Acrylic on canvas 160 * 205 cm 46
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YASER SAFI Leila’s Father & The Wolf (2013) Acrylic on canvas 119 * 97 cm 48
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MOUNIR SHAARANI Free Man (2013) Gouache and acrylic on canvas 100 * 100 cm 50
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MOUNIR SHAARANI Free Woman (2013) Gouache and acrylic on canvas 100 * 100 cm 52
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MOUNIR SHAARANI Homeland (2013) Gouache and acrylic on canvas 100 * 100 cm 54
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EDWARD SHAHDA Last Fighter (2013) Mixed media on canvas 115 * 80 cm 56
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EDWARD SHAHDA Last Fighter (2013) Mixed media on canvas 115 * 80 cm 58
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EDWARD SHAHDA Last Fighter (2013) Mixed media on canvas 115 * 80 cm 60
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FADI YAZIGI Untitled (2013) Ink on rice paper 70 * 138 cm 62
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FADI YAZIGI Untitled (2013) Ink on rice paper 70 * 138 cm 64
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FADI YAZIGI Untitled (2013) Mixed media on canvas 230 * 190 cm 66
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