Mansour El Habre (b.1970, Lebanon) holds a Diploma in Plastic Arts from the Lebanese University and a Master’s degree in Plastic Arts from the University of Balamand. He teaches painting and drawing at the Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts (ALBA).
Since 1993, El Habre has participated in solo and group exhibitions in Lebanon, as well as in Geneva, London, Greece, Canada, Paris, Washington, Kuwait, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar. In 2008, he was invited by the Lebanese Ministry of Culture to participate in the International Triennial of Engraving in Rodeos, Greece.
His work is included in private and public collections, including Audi Bank and the Solidere Headquarters in Beirut, as well as the Cité Sociale de Fameck in France.
Exhibited under the title "Beau Négatif", the works of Mansour El Haber focus on a unique depiction of space, characterised by shapes that are colourful, torn, scattered or stacked harmoniously and assiduously, playing with the tension between clear and blurred boundaries. There are forms that are flat, others that are sharp or even suspended in space, resulting in a double, and contradictory point of view: one from above and one in front.
This spatial antinomy is essential to El Haber’s abstract art. It puzzles the viewers, who are encouraged to experiment with their perspectives in relation to the paintings. Each angle produces a different picture, highlighting an inner force attributed to the artworks, originating from the artist’s technique of piling up, tearing and colouring pictorial elements.
The longer the viewer observes the paintings, the more abstraction merges with realism. Abstract forms begin to sport naturalistic qualities, with incomplete fragments forming hints of human characteristics, feeding into antithetical spirit of the works. The eye is constantly seeking to make sense of the myriad of components, engaging in a constant exchange with the surface of the canvases.
Isn’t "Beau Negative" a beauty in itself? Is this name of the exhibition nothing more than an exploration of the concept of beauty? The collection of paintings confronts the viewer to two possibilities: to either move away from the artworks to contemplate an abstract scene, or to come closer and admire the surface’s infinite details. The compositions reveal a struggle between forms, yet exude a luminous tranquillity, a creative refuge where viewers can escape reality and seek new interpretations of beauty.
- Dr. Abdo Boueiz