Me and My Little Duckling

The fact that for artists, creation is drawn from their experiences and feelings is nothing new. However, what is novel are the ways in which each artist’s unique experiences bloom into their choices of medium, color, texture, and emotion. For Ekleel Alfaris, the multi-faceted Saudi Arabian and Austrian artist, each painting is a cobblestone in the path of her identity. “I am creating my own identity in the personalities and faces I draw. They all have a story,” says the artist. Falling in love with horses and horseback riding at the age of three, Ekleel’s works have a particular connection to her surrounding environment and nature. Her paintings weave together a sense of childlike innocence, reflected in her choice of bright and playful colors, with complicated and deep emotions felt only by those with a profound knowledge of self.

Survivors, inspired by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, features multiple faces captivating the eyes of the viewer with their intense but unspoken pain and inner turmoil. The used medium seems to be running down the canvas, somehow resembling a rain that is not only physical and tangible but exists within the minds of the figures, representing those affected by the pandemic. Within the depicted pain, there are shapes resembling the sun, and areas painted in yellow, perhaps to signify brief moments of happiness and joy felt by the Survivors.

dimensions 70x90 cm.