Al Riwaq to host solo exhibition by Iraqi artist

Al Riwaq Art Space would open the first solo exhibition in Bahrain by Iraqi artist Sinan Hussein on January 19 at 7 pm.

Artist Hussein explores the cyclical nature of life in his solo exhibition ‘Hîjj’.

According to the artist, ‘Hîjj’ is a word with a range of meanings in the Arabic language. 

It can indicate a passion of feeling as strong as rage, without the negative context. 

“The word Hîjj can also be traced to a the Sufi metaphysical concept of “Hîjj” – a word with its roots in Persia. It literally translates as ‘nothing’ but its meaning is far deeper that this: that one can encompass everything and nothing, transience and immanence, at once,” according to the statement from the art space.  

Elements and textures from his Iraqi childhood and his world travels collide into a tragi-comic surrealist landscape, realised through the medium of oil paintings. 

The observer is presented with a world concealing its underlying tensions, the force of which have split it in two: partnerships are in turmoil, as the butting horns of the ram suggest warring lovers as well as the war between body and soul, society and the individual. 

There is a celebration of life and death, the grotesque and the beautiful, moving in the circular rhythm of life that see lovers turn into enemies, the wise man turn into a fool and back again, blurring the everyday tensions of life into the spiritual disquiet of our contemporary society.

Sinan Hussein is a plastic artist from Iraq. A graduate from Baghdad University, he is also a member of the Iraqi Artist Association and Iraq Plastic Artists Union, having exhibited in the region; Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Qatar, Kuwait, as well as the US. Sinan Hussein draws inspiration from surrealism.

Opening Date: Tuesday January 19, 7 pm 

Opening Hours: 10 am-
10 pm Daily.