“Tales of Solace” is Dato’ Sharifah Fatimah Syed Zubir Barakbah’s latest visual chronicle, inspired by her past travels to the Middle East and the Balkans. Her personal stories of solace and solitude are expressed in the purest form: elegant patterns of streaks and markings of the palette knife on the canvas, spread over and across mesmerising voids in a harmonious mélange of colours. The regal 73-year-old Grande Dame of Malaysian abstract art, who traced her ancestry to Imam Ali al-Uraidhi ibn Ja’far al-Sadiq, the brother of Imam Musa ibn Ja’far al-Kadhim during a visit to Baghdad, Iraq in 1988, has enjoyed a prolific career with many formidable accomplishments that decades. spans five Through her extensive oeuvre, the viewer is often transported to a tranquil universe that elevates one’s spiritual being. A sense of order is restored amid the worldly chaos. The stillness of air is contained within the compositions illustrated in the colours of nature. Fifteen artworks - created since July last year - will be on display at G13 Gallery in Kelana Square, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, from March 1 until 20, 2021. The exhibition features her distinctive celebratory-style paintings with tactile surfaces. The unique “Pattern of Dream”, for example, uses acrylic, modelling paste and eucalyptus bark, with a sensational prism of colours.
Sharifah Fatimah’s preference for media such as acrylic, modelling paste and fibre (papyrus) on canvas as a conduit to her innermost being has been established since “Risalah Dari Malaysia: An Exhibition of Paintings by Five Malaysian Artists” at the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, Amman, Jordan, and the “Touch the Earth” series from her solo show at Balai Seni Menara Maybank, Kuala Lumpur, both in 1992. Her exploration of unconventional materials and techniques continued in her exhibition “Garden of the Heart”, at NN Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, in 2007. Sharifah Fatimah incorporated collages of traditional textiles and crafts, such as woven mengkuang mats embellished with embroidery and gold leaf, to create exquisite artworks that convey an intimate narrative. The idea of integrating eucalyptus bark into her paintings was sparked by a trip to Guangzhou, China, in 2014. She introduced the peeling bark in a series of works that was featured in an exhibition titled “Recent Works by Dato’ Sharifah Fatimah” at The Edge Galerie, Kuala Lumpur, in 2015 and later “Song of Eucalyptus”, in celebration of her golden jubilee as an artist at Segaris Art Center, Kuala Lumpur in 2017.
Sharifah Fatimah’s preference for media such as acrylic, modelling paste and fibre (papyrus) on canvas as a conduit to her innermost being has been established since “Risalah Dari Malaysia: An Exhibition of Paintings by Five Malaysian Artists” at the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, Amman, Jordan, and the “Touch the Earth” series from her solo show at Balai Seni Menara Maybank, Kuala Lumpur, both in 1992. Her exploration of unconventional materials and techniques continued in her exhibition “Garden of the Heart”, at NN Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, in 2007. Sharifah Fatimah incorporated collages of traditional textiles and crafts, such as woven mengkuang mats embellished with embroidery and gold leaf, to create exquisite artworks that convey an intimate narrative. The idea of integrating eucalyptus bark into her paintings was sparked by a trip to Guangzhou, China, in 2014. She introduced the peeling bark in a series of works that was featured in an exhibition titled “Recent Works by Dato’ Sharifah Fatimah” at The Edge Galerie, Kuala Lumpur, in 2015 and later “Song of Eucalyptus”, in celebration of her golden jubilee as an artist at Segaris Art Center, Kuala Lumpur in 2017.
Sharifah Fatimah’s preference for media such as acrylic, modelling paste and fibre (papyrus) on canvas as a conduit to her innermost being has been established since “Risalah Dari Malaysia: An Exhibition of Paintings by Five Malaysian Artists” at the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, Amman, Jordan, and the “Touch the Earth” series from her solo show at Balai Seni Menara Maybank, Kuala Lumpur, both in 1992. Her exploration of unconventional materials and techniques continued in her exhibition “Garden of the Heart”, at NN Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, in 2007. Sharifah Fatimah incorporated collages of traditional textiles and crafts, such as woven mengkuang mats embellished with embroidery and gold leaf, to create exquisite artworks that convey an intimate narrative. The idea of integrating eucalyptus bark into her paintings was sparked by a trip to Guangzhou, China, in 2014. She introduced the peeling bark in a series of works that was featured in an exhibition titled “Recent Works by Dato’ Sharifah Fatimah” at The Edge Galerie, Kuala Lumpur, in 2015 and later “Song of Eucalyptus”, in celebration of her golden jubilee as an artist at Segaris Art Center, Kuala Lumpur in 2017.
