Whispers of Sand
Saoud Al Abdallah works on doing away with the aesthetics of color - what painters find pleasure in - to delve in his treasured terrain, which is the cluster, turning his back to lines and tactility. He refines the elements of his painting: a child, a woman or a man, getting rid of all their details to form the simplest shape, circular and firm, which he thenm connects to the space by simply alluding to a sidewalk or skyline, or by leaving them floating in unlimited
space. In his attempt to attain the utmost simplicity the cluster almost becomes inscrutable. The painting is then unintentionally taken to the edge of abstraction. Color strokes are unnoticeable is Al Abdallah’s paintings
contrary to the majority of classic painters who attempt to over the stroke of the brush. This is due to the fact that Saoud doesn’t use acrylic colors, but sand! Colored sand dug up from places unknown to us that he uses to
transform from a simple material into an artistic element. It is important to mention that not only is sand an unusual material for painting, it also gives the artist the opportunity to create singular artworks, which evoke the authenticity of both the material and the structure. Saoud doesn’t preoccupy himself with nationalist or historical identities that have been prevalent in previous eras. He depicts human beings that bear no local characteristics. While his country has been under constant destruction for the past three years, he translated the ruination of buildings, humans, and relationships but also the human tragedy with a sense of dignity and humanism. Immigrants, refugees and injured people, all lost their homes, their lives violated… Al Abdallah’s work portrays this without outcry, propitiation, or tears… He conveys the tragedy of humans with nobility.Saoud Al Abdallah presents today the hard work of many years and endless nights spent refining
his paintings that portray a simple and solid cluster, concealing strong and deep emotions that only time can reckon with.
- Youssef Abdelki
