Artist mirrors Syria's alienation, displacement in huge mural

(Zaman Al Wasl)- The artist is a part of society; he simulates the historical, social, intellectual, political as well as economic issues as he lives the present changes within his society.

Salih al-Hajr, 40, told Zaman al-Wasl that he tried to visually document the rich details and stories of people who suffered a lot, and also document when Syrians go out to demand their legitimate rights and how they been faced by killing and abuse.

In his new mural, Salih used the Arabic calligraphy and the photography collage in a way that deals with the pain and the tragedy of lost and displacement (in and out the country) and reflects the suffering of the Syrians.

He pointed out that he tried to present a visual documentation in his mural. He revealed that his work is about16-meter and took a month to be complete. According to him, it’s something new and different.

He explained that the documentation is a kind of journalistic or investigative report, but he tried to make his new work a permanent historical document that tell us about the tragedy and suffering of the Syrian people and summarizes what happened between 2011 and 2018.

Salih said that he recalled the dreams, pains and memories that people left behind, and tried through this work to document the stage in which the people experienced their hardships, fatigue and tragedies.

As for using too much yellow and red on the painting: he explained that the desert areas were the only way of secure during the journey of displacement and the red is the blood that was shed there, as in the desert ISIS has murdered more than a thousand and five hundred martyrs of the Shaitat tribe, and buried them in the desert of Deir Al-Zour countryside.

On his choice of photographs and the use it in the collage: he explained that he selected these images from international news agencies websites and some credible sites and media for documentation purposes.

The art of collage is one of the beautiful works that made the most beautiful pieces of art. It is based on cutting and pasting several different materials together to form a painting.