Louay Kayyali (Syrian, 1934-1978)

Acclaimed Syrian Modern master Louay Kayyali is best-known for his depictions of dispossessed working class figures. In Woman Sewing, Kayyali adopts a social-realist interpretation of a female seamstress melancholically mending a shirt, a relatively thankless task.
Melancholy and resignation best characterise much of Kayyali's work after the 1967 war and the sentiments of political failure in the Arab world in general. Active during a time of immense upheaval, Kayyali was one of the region's most outspoken artists, his paintings externalising the pressing humanitarian and political issues that surrounded him. His powerful depictions of ordinary people are characterised by strong fluid lines that define the figures and the absence of extraneous detail. Despite his sensitivity to textures, namely the use of the masonite board, the clarity of Kayyali's outlines remain very classical.