Renowned Lebanese artist Chafic Abboud studied art at the Académie Libanaise des Beaux-Arts, Beirut, from 1945 to 1947. Among his professors were the Lebanese artist Cesar Gemayel and the French painter Georges Cyr, two prominent figures in the foundation of the modern art movement in Lebanon. The latter introduced him to Western schools of art, and in 1947, Abboud travelled to Paris. He worked in the ateliers of a number of artists such as Fernand Leger and Andre Lhote, and studied at the École Nationale des Beaux Arts. Permanently settling in Paris, Abboud participated in the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles from 1955, becoming a member of its committee in 1962. His work was featured in the first Paris Biennale in 1959.
Celebrated for his pioneering abstract painting, Abboud was inspired by the colourful landscapes of his youth in Lebanon. Incorporating folkloric themes as well as Byzantine and Orthodox Christian symbolism into his work, he developed a rich, visual lexicon that greatly influenced the generation of artists that followed him.
The artist’s work has been widely exhibited, most recently in, Sajjil: A Century of Modern Art, the inaugural exhibition at Mataf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha. A retrospective of the artist’s work was held at the Institut du Monde Arabe in the same year.
The work of Shafic Abboud has been collected by institutions across Europe and the Middle East including, British Museum, London; Tate Modern, London; Sursock Museum, Beirut; Musée National des Beaux-arts, Algiers; Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha and Barjeel Foundation, Sharjah.