Sana Gallery Presents Raouf Rifai's Exhibition 'Carnaval of Darwiches' 3/14-4/28

In the "Carnaval of Darwiches," Sana Gallery (12 Blair Road Singapore 089912) and the Middle East Institute present an extensive collection of contemporary art and masterpieces by Raouf Rifai on Thursday 14 March 2013 from 7-9:30 pm. An Introduction to the artwork will be given jointly by Assaad W. Razzouk, founder of Sana Gallery and Mohamad Nazry Bin Bahrawi, research Associate from the Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore.

Due to space constraints, registration is compulsory. Click HERE to register or RSVP to Athina Boardman, Commercial Director, Sana Gallery, at athina.boardman@sanagallery.com.

Rifai's Darwiches are an extensive body of work created by the artist over the past several years. Rifai's dedication to the Darwich resembles that of Paul Klee and his angels. Like Klee's angels, Rifai's Darwiches are many and varied. They share some common characteristics, foremost the fact that they are all rooted in human existence: They have weaknesses and flaws, a myriad of expressions, attitudes and emotions; they are the simple common man and the Sufi mystic; they are secular and spiritual; they are handsome and ugly; they are stupid yet at the time wiser than everyone around them; they are full of worries or playful; they cry yet derive humor from everyday tasks; In short, we recognize ourselves in them, they are us.The paintings selected for the exhibition paint a wide canvas of the Middle East's social and political conundrums.

"The Middle East in its reality resembles a circus, or a theatrical play, where you have your heroes and villains monsters and angels, as well as the brave and the cowardly," says Rifai, "I want to give them all a role, and highlight how society and politicians under-estimate The Common man at their own peril." "My art's main subject is Humanity; It is nourished by the history of our civilization and our heritage."

Born in Lebanon in 1954, Raouf Rifai lives and works in Beirut and holds a Ph.D in Urban Planning from the Sorbonne-Paris I. He also teaches art at the Lebanese University. Rifai has taken part in numerous collective shows throughout Europe; the United States the Middle East and Japan. He has also had more than fifteen solo exhibitions since 1984. In 2010, he was awarded the first prize of the Sursock Museum's Salon d'automne in Beirut. His art work has also been successfully auctioned at Christie's Dubai in 2011, as well as Ayyam Gallery in Dubai. See his artwork HERE.

Visit www.SanaGallery.com for more information.

To post a comment, you must register and login.