Lot 168: Nazir Nabaa (Syrian, b. 1941)

Nazir Nabaa (Syrian, b. 1941)
Eve
signed and dated in Arabic (lower right)
oil on canvas
24 7/8 x 29½in. (63 x 75cm.)
Painted in 1976

Nabaa's work from this period depicts the beauty of a female and shows her hidden strength and power. The postures of his female figures are reminiscent of those of ancient sculpture from bygone civilizations. Here he portrays either Eve, or Ishtar. The goddess of beauty was a major theme of Nabaa in the 1970s in this Orientalist series, portraying the oriental beauty with all her oriental elements, obeisance, love, honour and service. Nabaa's fascination with texture is quite apparent- here and using a textured field of cloth, randomly placed to cover the background. Much of Nabaa's work from this period focuses on isolation and loneliness and his refined technique and attention to realistic detail reminiscent of Pre-Raphaelite painting.