DIA AL-AZZAWI: THE LEBANON WORKS

The benefit of also producing art right next to an innovative new artistic museum undoubtedly also contributed to his creative expression within these three works, especially as so many aspects of that museum—the exterior cladding, the acquisition strategy and the visionary structure of exhibits—were designed by the artist himself. Nabu Museum, although suffering from the severe impact of national economic hardship and the unfortunate global implications of COVID-19, in addition to the dramatic effect of the Beirut Explosion in August 2020, much like all of Lebanon’s arts and cultural institutions, has managed to coherently and successfully marry the old and the new. It is a modern institution, with modern architecture and modern Arab artworks, also housing a great number of artefacts from the region’s rich and ancient past. Displayed side-by-side, it becomes clear that, in order to better understand the cultural production of the modern Arab artists exhibited, we cannot separate the artist from their creative heritage and historical roots—an idea that many artists across the region have explored in the past.

Influenced by his work as a trained archaeologist, having spent many years working for the Iraqi Antiquities department early in his working life, Azzawi’s experience in this field, especially in the studying, curating and handling of artefacts, had a direct impact on the direction of his future artistic output. The outlines, akin to the outlines marking an archaeological site, create a structured form surrounding the concealed, buried discovery—a prize amidst the darkness—which holds an air of mystery. In the words of Azzawi himself: “no one knows what the gift will be”.[1]

The feeling of standing out as a foreigner, an outsider, or as someone who has not had the same lived experiences as his countrymen, is evident in the lost, confused face depicted in the centre of Azzawi’s painting. Disoriented amidst the surrounding colour, commotion and bustling excitement, the lone head, staring into the distance, is typical of Azzawi’s depiction of faces, inspired by and clearly referencing the Sumerian visual arts which he would have often encountered during his time working at the Iraq Museum and throughout his archaeological practice. The Sumerians adopted a traditional aesthetic of large eyes maintaining a static gaze and used it extensively on their sculptural works, standing tall and proud whilst staring powerfully, perhaps towards the sacred or divine. Azzawi’s use of this reference is not surprising, symbolising that this person may be a stranger in many respects, but he is simultaneously deeply rooted in the heritage and the very earth of his country. That he painted this artwork in Lebanon is also of significance, rather than in either of his homes: London, his home since 1976, or Iraq, his homeland. Arab artists, whether in permanent or temporary exile, have created a base in Lebanon for many decades, embracing not just the artistic vitality of the country, but the proximity to, and cultural commonality with, wherever they once regarded as ‘home’. Azzawi’s vision has always been Arab rather than solely Iraqi, and his empathy for others’ own experiences of loss and of being a stranger, including that of many of his friends and contemporaries, extends across the Arab world and feeds into much of his work.

In this visionary personal portrait, confined within linear demarcations created by the figure’s own mind, he has created a bright, animated and glowing alternative reality, surrounding himself with a burst of theatrical colour. However, beyond the frames of his fantasy, the real world exists, painted by Azzawi in varying dark tones of brown shapes set against a black backdrop, contrasting starkly with the vibrant atmosphere in the centre. Azzawi’s paintings can often reflect the realities of lived experience, political moments, and historical homages, and even within these contextual compositions he successfully creates a conceptual world devoid of limitations: Imaginary Portrait takes this one step further. Removed from any particularly unique or precise context, the person depicted represents many people living in a collective, unrestricted dreamlike state or condition—a concept Azzawi has explored often in the past in his painterly examinations of the human condition, or ‘halat insaniyya’. Furthermore, this also extends to his unique personal approach to abstraction within his work as, for Azzawi, abstraction is not just merely an artistic style, but also a tool to shift and unsettle temporal, spatial and mortal perceptions.