The Workshop and Fann A Porter are proud to announce a group show of notable emerging artists taking place during Amman Design Week. The gallery will send a specially curated exhibition comprising the work of five artists from the region to showcase the breadth of diversity in Dubai. Curated by Dubai-based artist Safwan Dahoul, the artists are all at a critical stage of their careers where they have developed a strong sense of their own identity and practice and are ready for wider audiences. The exhibition will take place at the Manara Arts and Cultural Centre in Amman, which is known as a beacon of arts and culture in the Jordanian capital, providing a platform for local and regional talent.
Included in the exhibition are Houssam Ballan, Majd Kurdieh, Omar Najjar, Shereen Shalhoub, and Khaled Najjad Paez.
Curator Safwan Dahoul says: “Crucially, these young artists are all close in age and although they differ greatly in terms of subjects and styles, they are all connected to realistic expressionism and most of them are exhibiting for the first time in Jordan. This is very positive for the regional art scene and in Jordan specifically. It is a beautiful endeavour for a gallery help their artists to exhibit in different countries.”
Houssam Ballan (b. 1983, Syria) is primarily a figurative painter interested in capturing the daily life of Syrians. However, rather than focus on details and realistic rendering, his figures are emotive and capture the nuance of lived experience. He uses lines that are sometimes blurred to represent the emotional side of life and the unreliable nature of memory.
Majd Kurdieh (b.1985 Syria) works in a childlike style in which he incorporates strong literary and story-telling techniques. He paints recurring whimsical characters that are usually complemented by poetic phrases. His pieces narrate specific scenarios and also offer touching life lessons that speak to viewers of all ages and cultures.
Omar Najjar (b. 1992, Palestine) lives and works in Jordan. His preferred medium is oil paint, which gives a richness and texture to his work and he uses broad brush strokes to obscure detail from his every-day scenes. The overall effect is an artist who relies on colour balance and technique to impart his message.
Shereen Shalhoub (b.1978, Jordan) is an artist who has moved through several techniques in her career. Most recently, she has been working with clay and produced a series of sculptural installations that are an exploration into the human experience. Her primary question is asking the audience to look beyond the surface.
Khaled Najjad Paez (b.1992, Cuba) has mixed Cuban and Syrian heritage. His art is a mixture between hyperrealism and modern art, a mixture that preserves realism but presents it in a modern aesthetic frame. Without grounding his subjects, they have an ethereal presence and his work is infused with an interest in fashion and jewellery.
