Footnotes

Provenance:
Property from a private Lebanese collection

The present work is a stunning, monumental rendition of a popular artistic subject matter by Syrian artist Fateh Moudarres.

In Greek mythology, the Graces were the three goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity, goodwill, and fertility. The usual roster, as given in Hesiod, is Aglaea ("Shining"), Euphrosyne ("Joy"), and Thalia ("Blooming"). Moudarres weaves these figures, who have been depicted by centuries of renowned and accomplished sculptors and painters, into the stylistic framework of his own individual artistic style

The present work embodies all of the prominent features of Moudarres oeuvre: use of rich, earthly, ochre hues characterizing the rural palette of his native Syria, depictions of totemic, angular figures recalling the art of primitive Mesopotamia, and huddled groups, clinging to each other with a mixture of affection and anxiety.

Moudarres has been broadly classified as a painter within the expressionist tradition, accordingly, his mysterious figurative depictions are animated almost entirely by subjective experiences and esoteric perceptions of his natural environment.

The product of a fragmented family, Moudarres' yearning for domestic fulfilment is writ large in his works, which often revolve around sympathetic depictions of family units closely clustered together. Moudarres' sentiments are channelled through the aesthetic of ancient Mesopotamian reliefs and Neolithic statuary, an apt visual language given early arts fixation on the primitive subject matters of fertility, vitality and tribal solidarity.

Its liberal application of paint gives it a tactile and almost gestural quality. In place of Moudarres' usually crowded canvases, this is notable in placing compositional centrality on the three main figures depicted. Vibrant, lyrical and exemplary, the present work demonstrates the expressive finesse characteristic of Moudarres' oeuvre.