There is a lot of superb contemporary realism being made these days; this article by Brandon Rosas shines light on a gifted individual.
Dhewadi Hadjab (b. 1992) was born in the village of M’Sila, Algeria, a conservative Muslim community in which depicting living beings has historically been taboo. “Growing up in an environment where access to art was difficult if not impossible, I found myself looking for art everywhere in everyday life — in people’s behavior, in their gestures, and in the way they express themselves,” the artist recalls.
Hadjab’s first exposure to creative practice came through his mother, who wove ornamental rugs, but it was not until middle school that he was introduced to the broader world of fine art. “It was a crucial period that helped me sweep away my doubts and give concrete expression to my interest in art,” says Hadjab.
After convincing his parents that figurative art was compatible with Islam, Hadjab went on to earn degrees from the Ecole Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Algiers, the École Nationale Supérieure d’Art in Bourges (France), and the Beaux-Arts in Paris.
Studying in Algiers, Hadjab became fascinated with the world of dance while attending the rehearsals of a friend’s contemporary dance company. In the twisted, broken movements of the dancers struggling to learn new steps, Hadjab saw a metaphor for our own experiences of failure and isolation — as well as his future subject matter.
“I try to bring mystery or ambiguity into my paintings through the discomfort and brutality of posture,” says Hadjab, whose streetwear-clad figures contort into poses that suggest the aftermath of a great internal battle. “An elusive, enigmatic mystery then takes shape. This discomfort renders the characters silent and immobile, robbing them of their individuality.”
One such mystery is present in the untitled painting above, in which a man lies balanced on the arm of a sofa in a perfect plank position. With his arms hanging limply at his sides and a relaxed expression on his face, he appears almost to levitate, free from the concerns of this world. In this painting, as in all of Hadjab’s work, he invites us to contemplate the fragile nature of uncertainty and, in so doing, transcend the realm of our senses.
Staging is essential to pieces like this, with compositions carefully planned to draw attention to the subject and avoid overwhelming the audience with luxuriously rendered detail. “I want viewers to be able to enter easily into the painting, to become one with it,” Hadjab explains. “Paradoxically, there’s no question of limiting the spectator’s interpretation.”
See more of the artist’s work at mennour.com.
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