“Resistance”, an exhibition of recent works by renowned Saudi artists Faisal Samra opens today at Traffic Gallery. His first solo show at the gallery, Samra combines digital photography, painting, sculpture, video and performance to investigate various states of the human condition. His work raises questions about the nature of identity, liberation, survival, and religious belief.

The Other Behind the Wall (2009) by Faisal Samra

Samra’s recent works reveal powerful visuals which alarm and captivate the viewer to the point of significant emotional responses. Struggling to break free of something or someone is a general first-hand reaction to his tumultuous oeuvre which is consistently full of cultural amalgam particularly pertaining to the Middle East and the Occident. “The characters are rebelling against temporality, and trying, out of frustration, to counter the media image that controls and veils them. It shows how our visual field is loaded and invaded with images. The man becomes a warrior who has no arms, a Don Quixote. His defense is to remove himself from the image rather than adding another layer,” says the artist of his work in a recent statement.

Series: Distorted Reality – Last performance (occidental meat ) (2011) by Faisal Samra

Faisal Samra is a Bahraini-born Saudi national. He has had over 25 solo exhibitions and participated in over 50 group shows around the world. A former student at the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts in Paris, he has studied, worked and taught in New York, Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and France.

Samra’s work has been exhibited in numerous private galleries and museums including the British Museum (London), Institute de Monde Arabe (Paris), National Museum (Mexico City), Bahrain National Museum (Manama), Saeb Eigner Collection (London), Sheikha Paula Al Sabah (Kuwait) and The Khalid Shoman Private Collection (Amman).

From the Video installation "Resistance" (2010- 2011) by Faisal Samra

“Resistance” by Faisal Samra is on at Traffic through May 11th.

Traffic Art Gallery, Umm Suqeim Road 04 347 0209