Lot 107: Untitled

Ayman Baalbaki (Lebanese, b. 1975) Untitled signed in Arabic, signed and dated 'Ayman Baalbaki 2010' (on the reverse) acrylic on fabric mounted on canvas 59 x 79in. (150 x 200.8cm.) Painted in 2010

150 x 200.8cm.

Torino, Luce Gallery, Ayman Baalbaki, Ciel Chargé de Fleurs, 2010. Liverpool, The Bluecoat Centre for the Contemporary Arts, Arabicity: Such a Near East, 2010 (illustrated in colour, p. 24).

R. Issa (ed.), Ayman Baalbaki Beirut Again and Again, London 2011 (illustrated in colour, pp. 48-49).

Luce Gallery, Torino. Rose Issa Projects, London. Acquired from the above by the present owner.

Descending from a family of artists, it may have seemed natural for Ayman Baalbaki to depart on an artistic journey of his own. However, his unique orchestration of technique and subject matter combine to create fascinating canvases that remain true reflections of his personal style and inspirations. Describing his initial works as 'polite' and 'soft,' he appreciated that it took time and a growing passion for artistic production to define his technique. Now, the energetic flare that has become synonymous to his paintings have made him one of the Middle East's most expressive artists. This present work, part of a collection entitled Destruction & Loss, exudes a myriad of personal and technical complexities. Baalbaki recounts that studying art in Paris proved to be an important time of self-introspection. Projecting his feelings of aggression and defensiveness onto his works, these visceral explorations stem from the displacement, loss and instability he experienced growing up in a war-riddled society. Born in Lebanon in 1975, the year of the Lebanese Civil War, these intense emotions critically inform Baalbaki's visual language. Each of his expressionist-like brushstrokes is imbued with a dynamic sense of chaos, heightened through the generous application of paint and exaggerated use of colour. Filling the entirety of the picture plane, Baalbaki's technical mastery combines a unique formulation of space and dimensionality to breathe new life into the reconstruction of war-plagued buildings. Baalbaki gracefully brings together the beauty of form and colour with the roughness and brutality of the reality that surrounded him throughout his life, making this monumental work of his most striking compositions.