Nabil Kanso

Nabil Kanso
Nabil Kanso
Born 1946
Nationality American
Field Painting
Nabil Kanso in front of his painting. Mission of Venezuela to the United Nations

Nabil Kanso is a Lebanese-American painter born in Beirut, Lebanon. His works deal with contemporary, historical and literary themes, and are marked by figurative imagery executed with spontaneous and vigorous handling of the paint and often done on large-scale formats. They reflect movement and tension embodying intense colors and symbolic forms addressing social, political, and war issues.[1] The Vietnam War and the Lebanese Civil War have profoundly affected the development and scope of his themes dealing with violence and war. His long-running Split of Life series encompasses an extensive range of enormous paintings depicting scenes of human brutality and suffering.[2]

Contents

Life and work

Nabil Kanso grew up in Beirut where his family lived in a house adorned with Italian and Oriental art. In 1961, he went to England, and attended the London Polytechnic studying mathematics and science. In 1966, Kanso moved to New York, and enrolled at New York University where he received BA and MA in art history, philosophy and political science. 1968, he committed himself to painting, acquired a studio in Manhattan, and embarked on developing his ideas and method of painting.[3]

1970–1979

In 1971, Kanso held his first one-man show at the 76th Street Gallery exhibiting 80 paintings that included portraits and nudes in compositions reflecting in varying degrees expressionist, romanticist and symbolist influences.[4][5] Between 1971 and 1973 he held a series of solo shows that included the Wanderer, Danse Macabre, Birds of Prey, Place des Martyres, and Expressions.[6][7] Although the exhibitions drew attention and reviews, the lack of sufficient subsistence forced the closing of his studio whose contents including hundreds of works were placed in storage, and, eventually, lost or destroyed.[8] Between 1974 and 1979, Kanso took studios in different locations in the Carolinas, Atlanta, and New Orleans producing a large number of paintings. Among the works of this period are the series Vietnam (1974), Lebanon, which he began in 1975, at the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War, One-Minute (1978–79) on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Jazz suite (1978-79) on jazz music, and Faust (1976–79) comprising over 100 paintings on Goethe's drama.[9]

1980–2007

In 1980, Kanso settled in Atlanta where he established a studio and held several exhibitions.[10][11] In 1984, he went to Venezuela where his works were shown in Maracaibo (1985), Caracas (1987), and Mérida (1987–88). The exhibitions were an invaluable stimulant in initiating the Journey of Art for Peace through which his works were shown under the auspices of art museums, cultural institutions, and peace centers in extensive solo exhibitions that traveled internationally and particularly in Latin America.[12] Kanso displays his works by covering the entire walls of the exhibition space with his paintings.[13] The installation surrounding the viewer aims to convey the intensity between the reality of the subject matter and the actuality of painting, and reflect the artist's engagement with the canvases whose contents represent his visual life and relationship to conflicting Eastern and Western cultures and traditions.[14]

Nabil Kanso in Atlanta Studio 84.jpg

Among the works of this period are the series South Africa (1980), Apocalyptic Riders (1980), DreamVision (1980-81), Lebanon (1982-83), Apocalypse (1984), Warring Wings (1984–85), Othello (1985), the Cluster Paintings (1986–88), Leaves from the Theatre of War (1980s), The Dance of Salome (1988), America 500 Years (1989–91), Kuwait 1990–91, Living Memory (1993–94), Bosnia (1995–96), Portraits (1997–99), Iraq (2004–06).

Books

References

  1. ^ Articles in http://nabilkanso.com/texts.html
  2. ^ Nabil Kanso: The Split of Life: Paintings 1974-1994, NEV Editions, Atlanta, GA, 1996
  3. ^ biography, nabil kanso, nabilkanso.com
  4. ^ Art Gallery: "Eye on New York: Kanso's Show at 76th Street", January, 1972
  5. ^ Brown, Gordon: Kanso at 76th Street, Arts Magazine, New York, February, 1972
  6. ^ Bowles, Jerry: 'Kanso's Paintings" Artnews, New York, July, 1972
  7. ^ Brown, Gordon: "Kanso’s Expressions", Arts Magazine, New York, February, 1973
  8. ^ The Split of Life, pp.11-12
  9. ^ Nabil Kanso: Faust: Paintings 1976-1979, NEV Editions, 1997
  10. ^ Fox, Catherine: "Artist inspired by War-torn Homeland", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July 8, 1984, pp. H1–2
  11. ^ Fox, Catherine: "Fantastic Visions", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 19, 1985, p. H2
  12. ^ Spanish articles in http://apocalipsis.us/articulos.html
  13. ^ Kanso calls them "the moving murals", The Split of Life, p.11
  14. ^ Kurlansky, Gail: "Nabil Kanso's Split of Life Paintings: Looking for the Poet: Power, Death, and Sexuality", Art Papers, November/December, 1986, pp.23–26

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Nabil Kanso — Nabil Kanso, né en 1946 à Beyrouth, est un peintre américain d origine libanaise. Sommaire 1 Œuvre 2 Biographie 2.1 1970 1979 2.2 1980 2010 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Nabil Kanso — (1946, Beirut, Líbano, nacionalizado estadounidense) es un pintor y activista social, cuya obra trata de temas contemporáneos, históricos y literarios caracterizado por sus composiciones figurativas de gran densidad y intensidad y en formato… …   Wikipedia Español

  • The Split of Life — is a series of over 80 mural size oil paintings by Nabil Kanso. The paintings span a period from 1974 to 1994, and deal with contemporary and historical issues of war and violence. [Nabil Kanso: The Split of Life Paintings: 1974 1994, NEV… …   Wikipedia

  • Lebanon (painting) — Lebanon is a mural size painting by Nabil Kanso depicting the Lebanese Civil War in a scene invoking the spirit and character of the people in the midst of horror and violence gripping the country. [Nabil Kanso: The split of Life: Paintings 1974… …   Wikipedia

  • Place des Martyres (paintings) — Place des Martyres is the title of a series of over 250 watercolors and drawings executed in New York and Beirut between 1971 and 1974 by Nabil Kanso. [ Nabil Kanso: Place des Maryres: Works on Paper , 76th Street Gallery, Catalog, New York,… …   Wikipedia

  • Faust (paintings) — is a series of approximately 100 paintings [ Nabil Kanso: Faust Paintings , 96 paintings and 8 drawings are reproduced from a series estimated at about 150 works, p. 10, NEV Editions, Atlanta, GA, 1996, ISBN 1 888536 15 2] created between 1976… …   Wikipedia

  • Crucifixion (1983) — Crucifixion, oil on canvas, 2.75 X 2.25 meters (9X7.5 feet), 198 The Crucifixion is the subject of a painting by Nabil Kanso painted in 1983. It is oil on canvas measuring 2.75 X 2.25 meters (9 X 7 feet).[1] The color conception …   Wikipedia

  • Othello (paintings) — Othello: My Warrior, oil on canvas, 96X120 inches (244X305cm), 1985 Othello is a series of paintings executed in 1985 by Nabil Kanso. The subjects of the paintings are loosely based on Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello. The series comprises 60… …   Wikipedia

  • Cluster Paintings — Widening of the Earth’s Vault oil on canvas, 3 X 4.25 meters (10 X 14 feet), 1987 The Cluster Paintings are a series of paintings created by Nabil Kanso in 1986 1988. They are characterized by compositions that divide the canvas space into… …   Wikipedia

  • Dance of Salome (paintings) — Dance of Salome, mixed media on paper, 115 X 79 cm (45 X 31 inches), 1988 The Dance of Salomé is the title of a series of 160 works consisting of 85 paintings and 75 drawings created by Nabil Kanso in 1988 and 1995.[1] It is based on biblical and …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”