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Terra (Un)firma: Samah Shihadi and Michael Halak Dual Exhibition

Past viewing_room
8 February - 22 March 2021
  • Terra (Un)firma , Samah Shihadi and Michael Halak Dual Exhibition

    Terra (Un)firma

    Samah Shihadi and Michael Halak Dual Exhibition

    Terra (Un) firma was originally intended to be the solo exhibition of Samah Shihadi, scheduled to take place at Cromwell Place in London, October 2020. As with many events and expectations over the previous year we were forced to adapt as London moved into lockdown. As such the exhibition has evolved in unexpected ways, first with a digital showcase and now with a physical exhibition in Dubai which now encompasses a body of work by fellow Haifa-based hyperrealist, Michael Halak.

  • Michael Halak, Collision, 2021 (Larger version of this image opens in a popup).
    Michael Halak, Haifa (Wadi El Salib), 2020 (Larger version of this image opens in a popup).
    Michael Halak, Life in Bubble, 2018 (Larger version of this image opens in a popup).
    Samah Shihadi, The Good Shepherd, 2020 (Larger version of this image opens in a popup).
    Samah Shihadi, Sticks and Stones, 2018 (Larger version of this image opens in a popup).
    Samah Shihadi, Hiding , 2018 (Larger version of this image opens in a popup).
    Michael Halak, Collision, 2021
  • Michael Halak

    Halak’s art follows western traditions of realist, illusory painting, but diverges in content which conflates local and global realities. This combination opens up the opportunity for multiple readings of his work and urges the viewer to consider more closely the contents with which they are presented. For Terra (Un) Firma the seven selected paintings by Halak capture the faces, social scenes and landscapes which immediately surround him. In these works flora and herbs such as olives and thyme prevail as a symbol of Palestinian identity but also speak to the universal viewer.

     

    The artist understands thyme as an emblem of origin and freedom, but as soon as it becomes confined to flowerpot, it loses its freedom; pulled up from its original soil to become a marginal decoration. His landscapes are charged with the central tension that shapes both his life and his work – the question of the connection between man and place, and related concerns regarding presence and absence, identification and disidentification, visibility and invisibility. His scenes bespeak a process of bifurcation that gives rise to two separate yet inseparable worlds. At first glance his paintings may appear as harmless depictions of rural landscapes or social settings such as the Haifa marketplace however, in a similar manner to Shihadi, his works are loaded with symbolism and multifaceted meanings. Works depicting the old streets of Jerusalem, for example, appear to relay routine daily life, however, upon closer inspection symbols of conflict and contradiction such as soldiers and flags rise to the fore.

    • Michael Halak, Olives and Thyme, 2019
      Michael Halak, Olives and Thyme, 2019
      $ 3,500.00
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    • Michael Halak, The Bread Seller, 2020
      Michael Halak, The Bread Seller, 2020
      $ 22,000.00
      View more details
    • Michael Halak, Life in Bubble, 2018
      Michael Halak, Life in Bubble, 2018
      $ 10,000.00
      View more details
    • Michael Halak, Jerusalem, 2020
      Michael Halak, Jerusalem, 2020
      $ 7,000.00
      View more details
    • Michael Halak, Haifa (Wadi El Salib), 2020
      Michael Halak, Haifa (Wadi El Salib), 2020
      $ 8,000.00
      View more details
    • Michael Halak, Cracked Olives, 2018
      Michael Halak, Cracked Olives, 2018
      $ 12,000.00
      View more details
    • Michael Halak, The Lost Horizon, 2017
      Michael Halak, The Lost Horizon, 2017
      $ 22,000.00
      View more details
    • Michael Halak, Thyme, 2020
      Michael Halak, Thyme, 2020
      $ 5,000.00
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    • Michael Halak, Collision, 2021
      Michael Halak, Collision, 2021
      $ 12,000.00
      View more details
  • Samah Shihadi

    Samah Shihadi

    The body of work produced by Shihadi for Terra Un(firma) is divided into two segments, The Living and The Land, which take 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. The Living is a reflection upon the artist’s complex and conflicting internal (psychological) and external (social) worlds. As a dual marginal existing within a liminal space Shihadi navigates the clashes between individuality and responsibility that comprise contemporary womanhood in her society and extend towards women, globally, who face discrimination, marginalisation, identity crisis and other multi-faceted gendered issues. 

     

    The selected works for The Land turn towards the physical space and natural environment as a site ofconnection, displacement and contestation, which the artist conflates with notions of the home, family and collective identity. Each large-scale work selected for the exhibition has been painstakingly produced over several months. Shihadi’s work oscillates between classical-figurative realism, which dutifully captures and records that which surrounds her and fantastical surrealism that draws from the artist’s preoccupations with mysticism. Shihadi employs a dramatic approach to hyperrealism sketching using chiaroscuro to form a magical reality which blends both fiction and fantasy. Symbolism - religious, ritualistic, political, and cultural - is interwoven into much of Shihadi’s work, forming complex layers that the viewer must unpack in order to absorb deeper meanings.

    • Samah Shihadi, Harvest, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Harvest, 2020
      $ 6,000.00
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    • Samah Shihadi, Hiding , 2018
      Samah Shihadi, Hiding , 2018
      $ 10,000.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Home, 2019
      Samah Shihadi, Home, 2019
      $ 12,000.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Landscape, Olive Trees , 2018
      Samah Shihadi, Landscape, Olive Trees , 2018
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    • Samah Shihadi, Patience (Sabre Series), 2019
      Samah Shihadi, Patience (Sabre Series), 2019
      $ 6,000.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Picnic, 2018
      Samah Shihadi, Picnic, 2018
      $ 7,000.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Resilience (Sabre Series), 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Resilience (Sabre Series), 2020
      $ 6,000.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Sticks and Stones, 2018
      Samah Shihadi, Sticks and Stones, 2018
      $ 12,000.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, The Good Shepherd, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, The Good Shepherd, 2020
      $ 6,500.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Tiberias , 2018
      Samah Shihadi, Tiberias , 2018
      $ 11,000.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Under the Threat, 2016
      Samah Shihadi, Under the Threat, 2016
      $ 2,000.00
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    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 1, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 1, 2020
      $ 850.00
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    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 10, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 10, 2020
      $ 850.00
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    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 12, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 12, 2020
      $ 850.00
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    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 13, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 13, 2020
      $ 850.00
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    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 15, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 15, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 16, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 16, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 18, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 18, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 2 , 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 2 , 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 3, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 3, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 6, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 6, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 7, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 7, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 8, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 8, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
    • Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 9, 2020
      Samah Shihadi, Terra Studies 9, 2020
      $ 850.00
      View more details
  • More Information on the Artists

    • Samah Shihadi
      Artists

      Samah Shihadi

      Hyperrealist Samah Shihadi graduated with a BA in art from Oranim College, Israel (2012) and an MFA from Haifa University, Israel (2015).
    • Michael Halak
      Artists

      Michael Halak

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