Shadi Al-Atallah: Rapture

Steve Turner is pleased to present Rapture, a solo exhibition by London-based Shadi Al-Atallah which features recent paintings that depict enigmatic figures within domestic spaces which have everyday  objects or sterile environments which contain medical and electrical equipment. The figures are in a state of ambiguity, their forms entwined and indistinguishable. They appear to be at the edge of a quarrel or an affectionate embrace, captured in a moment of heightened emotional intensity. Al-Atallah’s compositions are inspired by Mesopotamian and Greek depictions of wrestling and they represent the complex terrain where desire and fear collide. According to Al-Atallah, Rapture addresses both the everyday fear of end-of-world self-destruction and a yearning for tenderness and vulnerability that transcends the physical.