Tarek Sebastian al-Shammaa
Lake of Niloofar, 2023
Oil stick, acrylic, and high gloss oil paint on canvas
48 x 26.25 inches
Tarek Sebastian Al-Shammaa's work explores the intermingling of various culture symbols, drawing upon his French/Iraqi heritage to rethink global aesthetics and expression. In compositions heavily influenced by contemporary and ancient...
Tarek Sebastian Al-Shammaa's work explores the intermingling of various culture symbols, drawing upon his French/Iraqi heritage to rethink global aesthetics and expression. In compositions heavily influenced by contemporary and ancient traditions, from graffiti culture to historical mythologies. Here, rendering landscape claimed by numerous historical empires in Asia, The Lake of Niloofer examines the global resonance of the lotus above and beyond its more regional interpretations. While the symbol has major political and religious connotations in South Asia, Tarek reminds us of the more global language that this type of iconography can present. Tarek's work creates a broader global conversation about the mixing of cultures in Asia and beyond, demonstrating an emerging transnational aesthetic.
His
main practice is contemporary history painting in which he combines
historical and mythological subject matter, but contrasts these ideas
with the harsh reality of the contemporary world. As an artist with a
complicated mixed ancestry he is ideally placed to comment on the past /
current dominant forces at large.
Tarek
Sebastian Al-Shamma is a painter who creates large technicolour
canvasses that delve into tropes of mysticism, colonialism, and
tokenism. As a first-generation French / Iraqi living in Britain, he
continually questions the ongoing turmoil and injustices in the Middle
East under Western imperialism, and the effects of colonial exoticism. (Bio courtest the Bomb Factory, London)
Sebastian Al-Shamma is a painter who creates large technicolour
canvasses that delve into tropes of mysticism, colonialism, and
tokenism. As a first-generation French / Iraqi living in Britain, he
continually questions the ongoing turmoil and injustices in the Middle
East under Western imperialism, and the effects of colonial exoticism. (Bio courtest the Bomb Factory, London)
His
main practice is contemporary history painting in which he combines
historical and mythological subject matter, but contrasts these ideas
with the harsh reality of the contemporary world. As an artist with a
complicated mixed ancestry he is ideally placed to comment on the past /
current dominant forces at large.
Courtesy of Rajiv Menon Contemporary
Copyright The Artist