Subhan Allah

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Subhan Allah

2014
Prints; screenprints
Silkscreen on archival paper with gold leaf
unconfirmed: 48 1/16 × 48 1/16 in. (122 × 122 cm) Frame: 49 1/2 × 49 1/4 × 1 3/4 in. (125.73 × 125.1 × 4.45 cm)
Purchased with funds provided by Art of the Middle East: CONTEMPORARY (M.2016.2)
Not currently on public view

Curator Notes

...
Lulwah Al Homoud is considered to be a pioneer in Saudi Arabia’s dynamic contemporary art movement but one who has not rejected the past. She has said, "If you decide to break the rules, you have to master them well first," and indeed Al Homoud studied traditional calligraphy as well as the history of the theoretical and proportional systems on which this art is based. She uses the time-honored Islamic calligrapher’s tools of ink, gold, and paper but to totally new and brilliant effect. Building on the underlying geometry of the classical letterforms, she creates abstract compositions that are nonetheless legible. Such is the case with the beautiful Subhan Allah (Glorified is God), which typifies the seamlessly spiritual and conceptual nature of her best works. Al Homoud studied art and design in London, earning a bachelor of arts from the American College, and a master of arts from the College of Arts and Design. Currently based in Dubai, she has participated in international exhibitions and installations in London, Paris, and Shanghai, among other places. She not only represents the new cohort of Saudi artists but also is an inspiration to a rising generation of young Saudi women.
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Bibliography

  • Komaroff, Linda. "Islamic Art Now and Then." In Islamic Art: Past, Present, Future, edited by Sheila Blair and Jonathan Bloom, 26-56. New Haven, New York, and London: Yale University Press, 2019.