“The Game,” 2019. Oil and glycerol on canvas.
Dimensions are: 63 inches x 78.75 inches
Image courtesy of: Ocula
Farah Atassi is a Belgian-born, Paris-based artist who was born to Syrian parents. The artist attended the Ecole des Beaux-Arts where she studied art history; when she first graduated in 2005, Atassi created bare interior landscapes and generic spaces such as bathrooms and kitchens.
The paintings were recognized by grids that organically emphasize the perspective of spaces and describe utilitarian stonework and tile. The splashes of color that Atassi interjects have a way of reinventing the spaces into a completely different realm.
“Model in Studio 2,” 2019. Installation view at Consortium Museum in Dijon, France.
Atassi’s methodology is unique. She sets up several canvases at once to “create the setting.” When that first part is finished, the artist adds the background and central figures. Finally, she adds the fine details.
Image courtesy of: ArtSpeak NYC
Atassi’s energetic works mix colorful patterns and motifs that are inspired by several different areas: modern masters, Jazz Age, and Islamic textiles. In addition, the artist uses geometry at the base of all her works in order to delineate classic subjects such as still lifes and female nudes.
In 2017, Atassi did a series of paintings that explored nudes… however, these paintings were vastly different than more recognized nudes since Atassi never paints live models. She says (courtesy of Galerie Magazine), “I like to do samplings. I take a leg here, I take a head there, and then I invent. I don’t really care about reality.”
“The Swimmer,” 2017.
In 2013, Atassi received a prestigious nomination for the Prix Marcel Duchamp.
Image courtesy of: Los Angeles Times
Atassi uses just a few shapes in each work; perhaps a circle, a triangle, or a line. With these abstract shapes, she creates her scenes and her work transforms into a figurative painting. The shapes are essentially the building blocks for her work. Atassi likens this part of her work to a theater set… a background is in place on the “stage” and then figures (or compositions) are inserted with a grid that slowly becomes the music. The final step is to connect the figures and the background so that they are “engaged” in a sort of melody together.
“Circus,” 2017. Oil and enamel on canvas.
Dimensions are: 72.75 inches x 55 inches
Image courtesy of: Francois Ghebaly
Atassi has been using the same method for years… it is a laborious process of masking her canvas with tape prior to applying color in oil and glycerol. Then, she adjusts the tape lines and repeats the process a number of times so that some areas receive more color layers than other areas.
It is easy to see that Atassi counts Cubism as a main inspiration and beyond Cubism, there is a lot of Picasso in her works. Many people say they see “Picasso’s feet” in Atassi’s characters. She says that all the artists that came before her had their “language.” Whether she’s using Picasso’s language or Matisse or Leger’s; quickly that language becomes Atassi’s and the result is stunning.
From 2019, Farah Atassi at Almine Rech. This was Atassi’s first solo New York City exhibition. One interesting fact, Almine Rech is married to Picasso’s grandson so you could say that Atassi has traveled full-circle again.
Image courtesy of: Galerie Magazine, photographed by: Rebecca Fanuele
Atassi uses colors to highlight geometry, and she uses them very intuitively. She says that they come to her naturally… for her, there are “high colors” and “low colors.”
One thing that sticks out is the appearance of a clock or a watch in many of Atassi’s works. She says (courtesy of Creative Boom), “I like the idea of time passing. It’s also a highly effective and graphic motif. But yes, there are women with watches and clocks, which are also focal points for the gaze, like brooches on a garment. I construct these paintings ‘brick by brick’. It’s a pretty long process, and the focal points come late in the process.”
Women are often painted wearing a watch… maybe they are just accessorizing or maybe (and this is probably more of the case), they are constantly waiting?