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A calmness encompasses this work by the well-known Lebanese abstract artist Hanibal Srouji, perhaps in part down to the choice of light-coloured, natural shades of off-white and beige, contrasted only with specks of gold-brown and the outline of what could possibly be walls of rock across a seascape. The scene is open to interpretation, but there is a feeling that serenity will be short-lived? The viewer’s eye is quickly drawn to shapes in what might be water, prompting questions that remain unanswered. Are these swimmers, scattered sporadically in the sea, enjoying their leisure time? And if so, will they eventually make their way to the shore or will they be given a less-than-welcome greeting when arriving on land? Indeed, will they make it at all?

Srouji was born in Beirut in 1957 and raised in Saïda, before fleeing Lebanon with his family in 1976 following the outbreak of the civil war. He graduated from Concordia University in Canada with a Master’s degree in Fine Arts and has taught for many years worldwide, currently holding the position of Chair and Assistant Professor at the Lebanese American University in Beirut. Srouji’s work has its roots in the deep wounds, trauma and damage inflicted by war, witnessed in both his homeland and the region.

He is known for his wide and sometimes unusual choice of tools in his work which range from fire, carbon and graphite to coloured pencil, neon and acrylic. While his work is often described as abstract configurations of the scars of war, there is also a glimmer of hope attached to them, supported by their dreamlike quality which is reinforced by his use of pastel shades. His work has been widely exhibited in Lebanon and abroad.