ART LIBRARY – serie

The third and fourth volume of "The Art Library", pioneering series of slipcases initiated by the Misk Art Institute to provide a comprehensive panorama of Saudi and Arab visual artists.  These exquisitely designed volumes offer an informal yet richly detailed introduction to the most prominent figures of Arab art. The slipcased set contains two books, each dedicated to a Saudi and a non-Saudi artist. Rafa Nasiri is a contemporary Iraqi painter, printmaker, educator and author whose work combines an abstract reflection on Arabic calligraphy, poetry and Chinese art. His use of color and line resonates with the aesthetics of the Hurufiyya movement and abstract expressionism. Lulwah Al Homoud is a Saudi Arabian contemporary artist. Drawing on traditional Islamic and Western art, her work explores calligraphy and mathematical processes. Her work is distinguished by her use of complex Arabic letters to construct abstract yet technical works on paper. Lulwah Al Homoud and Rafa Nasiri illustrate the vitality and continuous renewal of the art of script and calligraphy in the Arab world. The two artists are from different generations, and their works represent two different genres that are both influenced, inspired and rooted in Arab artistic culture.

The seventh and eighth volumes of “The Art Library,” a pioneering art series that documents the most important modern and contemporary Arab artists.These gorgeously designed volumes offer an informal and yet detailed introduction to the most prominent figures of Arab art. The collection is characterized by medium-size books, each one dedicated to a single artist, richly illustrated and rigorously documented.The publications, published in English and Arabic editions, are launched seasonally, in spring and fall, two by two, in a sophisticated cardboard slipcase. Each slipcase presents a Saudi artist along with a non-Saudi artist.Salah Elmur’s work is composed of a fertile visual vocabulary that draws on his social and cultural heritage. Inspired by the many photographs he has collected from his family’s photography studio, Elmur’s paintings often emulate formal portrait settings with additional elements that complement but also unsettle the mood in his paintings. Muhannad Shono is a visual artist who feels no limitation to medium or scale. His multidisciplinary practice is catalyzed and structured by story. Shono’s work harnesses the power of narrative by creating and contesting personal, collective, and historical truths.