Tree (2001) by IBRAHIM EL SALAHIDalloul Art Foundation
Born in 1930 in Omdurman, the second biggest city in Sudan, Ibrahim El Salahi grew up in the district of El Abbasyia in a distinguished family.
Until recently, El Salahi has been captivated by the haraz, a typical tree of the Sudanese desert landscape. Growing on the banks of the Nile, this tree is resistant to water during the rainy season, and blossoms during the dry season.
This example from a large series shows new work on calligraphy that illustrates the subject of the tree, as he asserted: ‘When I see trees growing, you can see the calligraphic shape in them’.
Employing vibrant colors, the artist shaped the trunk, and the branches, with simple and continuous lines, while leaving blank spaces, in a minimalist way. The image is completely abstracted, but the symbol is strong: the tree connects the ground with heaven.
On another level, El Salahi imagines the human beings like trees; each of them contributes to bring something to the world. The oeuvre of Ibrahim El Salahi is a rich combination of artistic identities, and traditions, from the West, Africa, and Islamic civilization.
Through his path, he worked on forming an innovative plastic language, and technique, that made him a prominent figure of transnational modernism of the 20th century.
From the full biography of Ibrahim El Salahi by Arthur Debsi
