Sabhan Adam's Expressionist Visions at Galerie Polad-Hardouin

Galerie Polad-Hardouin in Paris presented a second exhibition of Syrian painter Sabhan Adam from January 24 to March 8, 2008, at its new space at 86 rue Quincampoix. Dominique Polad-Hardouin first discovered Adam's work through photographs and traveled to his studio in Hassakeh, near the borders of Iraq and Turkey, before mounting his first Paris show in 2003. Adam's expressionist paintings, characterized by minimal colors, knotty lines, and solitary figures, evoke raw energy and existential anguish. The artist, in a rare interview with Diala Geymayel, stated: 'When I work, I carry in my mind six billion human beings' and 'If I had not been a painter, I would have been a criminal.' His works recall the dark poetry of Artaud, Munch, Michaux, and Genet.