Footnotes

"I once wrote in a letter to a friend: there are two species of birds. The migratory birds - they fly across continents, mountains, valleys, villages, see an incredible amount until they come to a new continent. And then there are those other birds that always sit in the home, a small tree, jumping from branch to branch. From this tree they look outwards unto the the world; I belong to the second type.

I grew up in an old Arab house where everything was "perfectly self contained". The town with its animals, green gardens, and the houses with their water fountains were all I knew. The water which was the life blood of each house, was etched in my memory - and also my art. My facial landscapes would be inconceivable without what I have committed to memory. My work, the heads, the faces, such expressions would be impossible without my store of experience.

The works are not a fixed interpretation of my experiences, but in continuous movement. As soon as you begin to understand the meaning behind them, they shift and again appear new."

- Marwan

Provenance:
Property from a private collection, London

Marwan' ghoulish figures radically invert the conventions of traditional portaiture. By diverging from both idealization and realism, Marwan challenges established notions of physical beauty. His figures serve as visual metaphors to the spiritual poverty of mankind, and through rich clothing and colourful embellishment, they juxtapose the metaphysical and material aspects of human nature.

In this painting, an austere, lurid figure lurks behind a bright gold cloak decorated daubs of colour; the incompatibility of the figure and his garb are a visual testament to Adam's belief in the continuous conflict between appearance and essence.

born Damascus, Syria, 1934. Studied Arabic Literature at the University of Damascus (1955-57) then moved to Berlin, Germany, to study painting under Prof. Hann Trier (from 1957 onwards). From 1980, held professorship at the Hochschule der Künste, Berlin. Extremely prevalent motifs include the 'Head' and, to a lesser extent, the 'Marionette', both in the BM collection.

Exhibitions mainly in Germany, but also in the Middle East and U.S.A., and works in many public collections, including Abdul Hameed Shoman Foundation, Darat al Funun, Jordan; National Museum, Damascus; Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris; Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh. Based in Berlin.