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Hassan Sharif: Political Paintings (2008-2009), Alexander Gray Associates, New York (2022)
Open a larger version of the following image in a popup:Hassan Sharif: Political Paintings (2008-2009), Alexander Gray Associates, New York (2022)
Hassan Sharif
Press Conference No. 4, 2009Oil on canvas78 3/4 x 57 1/4 in (200 x 145.4 cm)HS441Further images
Though best known for his evocative sculptural compositions, Hassan Sharif was trained as a painter and remained dedicated to painting throughout his career. By the mid-1970s, Sharif had used his...Though best known for his evocative sculptural compositions, Hassan Sharif was trained as a painter and remained dedicated to painting throughout his career. By the mid-1970s, Sharif had used his painterly background to create grotesque, caricature-like scenes, critiquing everything from the United States’s foreign policy in the Middle East to the changing economic realities of life in Dubai after its unification. In a later series of paintings, Press Conference (2008–09), Sharif directed his biting political commentary specifically at those who used power and position for their own gain at the expense of others. “The series is about politicians all over the world. They are self-centered people, full of false promise, saying we will do this and that, we make your dream come true and so on.” In Press Conference No. 4 (2009), Sharif depicts a group of four politicians, all standing on blocks and talking aimlessly in every direction. Alluding to the politicians' delusional—and ultimately maddening—confidence, the loose brushstrokes animate the scene, emphasizing the figures’ madness and reflecting their unhinged psychological state.
Exhibitions
2022: Hassan Sharif: Political Paintings (2008–2009), Alexander Gray Associates, New York, NY
2009: Press Conference, 1X1 Gallery, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Publications
Sharif, Hassan and Catherine David. Hassan Sharif: Works 1973–2011. Ostfildern: Hatje Cantz Verlag, 2011, p.276.