PopUp Painting’s ‘artist of the week’ is Sudanese artist Ibrahim el-Salahi.
Born in Sudan in the 30’s Ibrahim el-Salahi is considered a pioneer in Sudanese art and was a member of the “Khartoum School” (an international school in Sudan). He began studying art in the 50’s in Sudan and subsequently moved to London to continue his education at the Slade School of Art. After a period of research and self-discovery, he returned to Sudan in 1957, there, he established a new Sudanese visual vocabulary, which arose from his own pioneering integration of Islamic, African, Arab and Western artistic traditions. The artist was one of the first to incorporate Arabic calligraphy in to his paintings. El- Salahi’s work developed through several phases, the first period during the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s was dominated by elementary forms and lines, then his work became rather meditative, abstract and organic. Subsequently his work is characterized by lines, while he mainly uses white and black paint. His recent paintings reflect his joy for life, his deep spiritual faith, and a profound recognition of his place in the world.
In the summer of 2013 a major retrospective show of El-Salahi’s work was mounted at Tate Modern.
We will be featuring Ibrahim El-Salahi’s work all week on Facebook and Twitter so keep an eye out for more information on the artist’s work, but in the meantime here are some of our favourite works by the artist:
