Inherited Shrapnel (Connecting childhood memories to the present) (2020)

Medium: Acrylic on Canvas

Size: 100x90cm

Overall Meaning

    This work serves as a psychological map of collective and personal trauma. It captures the "bad energies" of conflict not as a historical event, but as a living, breathing entity that continues to fight within the psyche. By channeling the endurance of a childhood shaped by the Lebanese Civil War, the painting suggests that war is a permanent internal state rather than just an external reality. It represents the exhausting cycle of a "shattered pulse"—a rhythm that is broken over and over again—illustrating your observation that for Lebanon, the struggle lacks a definitive conclusion. It is a visual testament to the resilience required to carry such heavy memories into the present day. In addition, The distorted, almost skeletal figure at the center appears both present and dissolving, as if caught between formation and disintegration. Layers of vibrant, restless color swirl around and through the body, suggesting an overwhelming influx of external forces—emotions, memories, or societal pressures—that both animate and destabilize the self. The exposed, rib-like structures evoke vulnerability and raw existence, while the fluid, electric lines coursing across the surface resemble energy, nerves, or currents of thought, reinforcing the idea of an inner system pushed to its limits. This interplay between structure and dissolution creates a tension between survival and collapse, making the painting a visceral meditation on resilience, where even in a state of rupture and distortion, the pulse of life continues to persist.

Composition and Forms

    The composition is built around a central, upward-surging mass that resembles a tangled nervous system or a storm of shrapnel. There is no traditional horizon or "safe" space for the eye to rest, which perfectly mirrors the instability of a war zone. The forms are fluid and electric, appearing as "currents" of energy rather than solid objects, suggesting that the conflict is atmospheric and inescapable. The dense, dark blacks and deep purples act as the crushing weight of the past, while the frantic blues and fiery oranges represent the active, clashing energies of the present. The way the lines overlap creates a sense of entanglement, showing how the "bad things" of the past and present are hopelessly knotted together.

Style

           The style of this painting is firmly rooted in Neo-Expressionism combined with Abstract Figurative Expressionism, emphasizing emotional intensity, gestural freedom, and psychological depth , where the physical act of painting becomes a release of raw emotion. The brushwork is urgent, agitated, and gestural, suggesting that the artist’s hand was moving with the same intensity as the memories being processed. By avoiding literal imagery (like ruins or weapons) and choosing abstraction, you’ve tapped into a more universal language of pain and energy. The layering of colors creates a sense of "visual noise," mimicking the sensory overload of war. It is an "action painting" that functions as a scream, turning the invisible scars of your childhood into a tangible, vibrating texture that the viewer can almost feel.