Terra (Un)firma : Samah Shihadi and Michael Halak

Exhibited at Tabari Artspace art gallery in Dubai, Terra (Un)firma was a dual exhibition of Palestinian hyperrealists, Samah Shihadi and Michael Halak.

Samah Shihadi

The body of work produced by Shihadi for Terra Un(firma) was divided into two segments, The Living and The Land, which took the artist's personal narratives and feminist outlook as a starting point from which to explore issues faced by women, across cultures, in the contemporary moment.

Michael Halak

While Shihadi's art was often rooted in the past or observed the present through the lens of fantastical-realism, Halak's photo-real paintings were fixed firmly upon the current moment. Halak's art followed western traditions of realist, illusory painting, but diverged in content which conflated local and global realities. This combination opened up the opportunity for multiple readings of his work and urged the viewer to consider more closely the contents with which they were presented.