HUSNI RADWAN

Born in Baghdad 1955.
BA in Fine Arts – Graphic Design from Fine Arts Academy, Baghdad.
Husni has had 11 solo exhibits in several places; Baghdad, Tunis, Tokyo, Nicosia, Ramallah & Jerusalem. He has also participated in several group exhibits in Beirut, Cairo, Tunis, UAE, Qatar, Belgium, Moscow, Tokyo, Berlin, Nicosia, Indonesia, Canada, Oslo & New York.


Hosni Radwan’s latest paintings represent a significant departure from his previous style and way of working. Prior to the works on show in this exhibition Radwan’s work centred on abstract conceptual painting that examined the dynamics of colour relationships and space. His paintings would take one into another dimension of the picture plane as with his show that explored the energy of the colour red. The impetus for his new paintings, Radwan explains, is a consequence of the effects of the occupation and siege of Ramallah. During that period the artist feels that he was severed from his train of thought and the flow and development of ideas. This spurred him in the direction of drawing and watercolour painting. Radwan speaks of the pleasure of using the medium that is a very important part of the process and the creation of these art works. It is enjoyment of painting, the satisfaction of creating representations free from heavy conceptual frameworks that Radwan says he is exploring. The subject matter of his watercolours are the old houses of Ramallah, with their tiled roof and beautiful stone work. Radwan would photograph the places first and work on the images in his studio, as circumstances did not permit him to work outdoors. The depictions he has created are full of tranquility and calm, and are picturesque in all their detail. They could not stand in sharper contrast to the destruction inflicted on the city and its inhabitants over the course of the year. Radwan suggests that with this body of work that he was not necessarily endeavoring to document and create a record that preserved the architecture of former days. Rather for him the houses and historic architecture are an exploration of his own identity and his relationship to the location Ramallah, and its places, for it is a city that he has come to live, work in and make his home.

Tina Sherwell