A celebration of language and colour

eL Seed. Anyone who wants to see the light clearly, needs to wipe his eyes first (2017). Courtesy of the artist and Novus Art Gallery.

Novus Art Gallery, Abu Dhabi's newest exhibition space will launch a group exhibition this week featuring highlights from artists who explore both language and colour.

A piece from the Perception series, completed last year by Dubai-based artist eL Seed is on show. The pink and black acrylic and spray paint on canvas work spells out the phrase that he painted across 50 buildings in Cairo's Manshiyat Nasr district: Anyone who wants to see the light clearly needs to wipe his eyes first. This work is one of few physical pieces that exist that pay tribute to the wall mural, so it is a good chance to witness this in person. 

Also on show is work from Wissam Shawkat, a contemporary calligrapher who is also based in Dubai and has spent several years deconstructing the art of calligraphy into his own signature style. Aya El Fallah, a young Egyptian artist, has a piece on show that takes reference from street art and has undertones of Basquiat and Bahraini artist Areej Rajab, whose emphasis is on colour-filled abstract pieces is also part of the exhibition.

Wissam Shawkat. Easy (2016). Courtesy of the artist and Novus Art Gallery

From outside the region, Language of Colours also includes work by Richard Orlinski, a French sculptor, one of whose large falcon artworks has recently been installed in the Abu Dhabi Presidential Palace; Derrick Santini, a British photographer; an Italian artist called Patrizia Polese; and Zhuang Hong Yi, from China.

Language of Colours will launch in Novus Art Gallery’s showroom in The Galleria, Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, October 25 and remain on display until mid-January. For more information, contact the gallery’s press team on info@novusartgallery.com.