EC T L L C O H O AD E H• W R IZ H AE S N MI RA T & NI I S K • RO Z IGI YA T V E I N A • FAD R O U YD WI A R E S I FE L A DE A S• H NA BIL NA Six Middle Eastern artists open their homes and collections exclusively for Canvas in our first feature on artists who collect. Hailing from Iran, Lebanon, Egypt and Syria and with artworks ranging from antiquities and Modern Arab art to Post War and Contemporary international art, the artists reveal their passions, advice and love for collecting. FEREYDOUN AVE 76 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT How were you introduced to the art scene? It was the era of The Factory and Andy Warhol and Ever swap works? Lots of times. the whole underground cinema movement. My film teacher was Martin Scorsese, but we spent Regional artists in your collection? Youssef Nabil (Canvas 1.1), Faisal most evenings around Max’s Kansas City, a night- Samra (Canvas 1.2) and Lalla Essaydi club where Andy and would-be superstars and (Canvas 6.4). artists hung out. They were crazy, wonderful years SPECIAL FEATURE International artists? and I was an idiot because I didn’t buy anything. Twombly, Rauschenberg, Warhol, You live that gypsy attitude and collecting really is Rosenquist, Christo, Richard Serra and Joan Mitchell. the last thing on your menu. Favourite works? Three studies done in pencil by What was the first piece you bought? Twombly as a poster that was the When I came back to Iran in 1970 after nearly 20 invitation for my show in Tehran. years abroad, my English was better than my Farsi. They’re so simple, just pencil signed in red crayon, dated 2000. The only cultural centre then was the Iran Ameri- ca Society Cultural Centre, which was also coinci- dentally designed by Wright. It had a theatre, four Facing page: Fereydoun Ave unfolding a work galleries and a downstairs annex – it was perfect by Andy Warhol. Mao Fereydoun Ave (Canvas 3.4) is for me and it was bilingual! I worked as resident wallpaper. 1974. Silkscreen on laminated paper. 1974. Approximately 250 x 250 cm. something of an institution. Arguably one of Iran’s designer with Douglas Johnson, the art director most influential Contemporary artists, the 66 year- and an artist in his own right. It was through him Below: Left: Parviz Tanavoli. old has witnessed the evolution of the Iranian art that I met Cy Twombly and then Charles Hossein Heech on Chair. 2008. Bronze. 18 x 9 x 7 cm. scene over the past four decades. After attending Zenderoudi (Canvas 5.5). I didn’t know any of the Edition of 10. Right: Cy Twombly. boarding school in England, Ave joined Arizona Contemporary Iranian artists and when I saw (Detail) Untitled study used State University (ASU) in 1964 to study desert Zenderoudi’s work, I thought WOW! I designed for poster invitation card for Fereydoun Ave 1999–2000 agriculture. All did not, however, go according to the catalogue, the poster, the exhibition. This was exhibition in Tehran. Circa 1999–2000. Pencil on plan. “Everybody looked like they’d just come from the first time I really wanted to own something. paper. 29 x 21 cm. the rodeo in their cowboy boots and I showed up in my Beatles suit and Beatles haircut,” Ave recalls. “Everybody knew I was in the wrong class!” Seren- “My taste changed especially after dipitously, ASU was famous for two things – snake the Revolution.” antivenin research and architecture, with Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West centre nearby. Ave found himself inspired by the art and architec- ture courses offered, graduating with a degree in applied arts of the theatre in 1968 and going on to attend the prestigious New York University’s Film School. Returning to Iran in 1970, Ave began working at the Iran America Society Cultural Cen- tre, followed by the role of art director at Tehran’s Zand Gallery, which led to an impressive art col- lection. With the onset of the Islamic Revolution, however, much was lost, yet it brought about the creation of the seminal 13 Vanak Street Gallery. With the opening of his international art gallery, XVB in Dubai in 2007, along with his versatile ca- reer as an artist, curator and gallerist, Ave’s private collection of Contemporary art spans houses in Iran, France and Greece. 77 I pleaded with my grandmother for a loan and I never return to what they were. I asked my fam- ARTISTS WHO COLLECT bought this wonderful Zendroudi piece for about ily to go through my collection and destroy any- $10,000. Unfortunately or fortunately, that was the thing that might have created problems. Losing start of it all. I also started collecting kilims, carpets artworks is a disaster, but it’s out of your hands. and fabrics so I could surround myself with things You make the best of it, learn and move on. Be- that would inspire me. cause I had lost the major part of my early collec- tion, I went back to Iran with a great sense of fear Was there a direction to your collecting? and apprehension, but determined to see if there When I met Twombly in 1975, I became inter- were creative seeds that would grow. My taste SPECIAL FEATURE ested in Art with a capital ‘A’, not just Contempo- changed especially after the Revolution – it was rary Iranian art. At Zand Gallery, which I helped to fuelled in the direction of more experimentation start, I was interested in educating and starting and helping younger artists to grow. others off on collecting. I should’ve been more selfish and selected the best pieces for myself, How did the opening of 13 Vanak Street because that’s how one builds a great collec- influence your collection? tion. I bought Hockney, Warhol and all the Iranian It really began as my studio, until I decided to artists like Leyly Matin Daftari, Ardeshir Mohas- show some of my friends by putting their work sess, Parviz Tanavoli (Canvas 4.2) and Vaziri. I just in the window and keeping it lit 24 hours a day. bought what I liked. Unfortunately I bought a lot Friends then asked if we could put works inside of what I liked and hardly any of the others. This so people could visit. I started experimenting with filling-in-the-gaps started after the Revolution, my own pieces and an artist cooperative concept when people started selling their collections. I began, and so 13 Vanak Street opened its doors. had the place and the time and I was getting Younger artists then began showing me their more serious about putting together a more works and this was before the million-dollar prices chronological collection. for Contemporary Iranian art. Most were willing to give away pieces as long as they could buy mate- How did the Revolution affect all this? rials to continue working. I would personally buy They confiscated Zand Gallery and many lost to help them economically. It was to encourage, their collections and houses, so a lot of artworks more than my need to collect. Being an artist, I fell into very strange hands. Most people thought just wished somebody had done that for me! that the Revolution was temporary, but things Why have you auctioned off a lot of works? “Buying is the smallest part of When 13 Vanak Street came above the radar, I ended up with a lot of works. We never took being a collector.” commissions but artists donated pieces. This 78 showed I had faith in their talent and they would feel they were paying something towards a free- bie space. Then I had pieces from people I didn’t show, but who needed financial help to be able to continue. So the collection after the Revolu- tion, for a while, was mainly based on people who I wanted to give economic freedom to, so they could continue to work. Then when I de- cided no more 13 Vanak Street, I had Ave Gallery in Dubai, so my collection also includes works from the two years it was open. A lot of peo- ple thought I was selling off through auctions. I wasn’t. The Zoroastrian Cultural Centre needed financing and I would only put stuff into auction if it was for a cause. What makes a good collector? Buying is the smallest part of being a collector. What is important is maintaining, restoring, doc- umenting and then eventually putting the works on public display, so the people have recourse to this richness that you’re trying to present. If it’s chronological, your collection is of historic im- portance. If it’s just your taste, then it’s a portrait of you. These steps have to be followed after you decide to buy something. It’s all documented, which is the hardest part, but is what every col- lector has to do. You don’t call yourself a collector because you have a lot of stuff, it’s when you’re actually serious about keeping your works in one of the few collector-nurturers, but I’m not Facing page: Left: 18th–century sculpture depicting good shape, restoring them and loaning them. anymore. And I’m glad about that. If have been angels from Germany in front of a work by Pablo Picasso. Faune from the instrumental in any way in encouraging it, then series Flora and Fauna of Antibes. Circa How is an ‘artist collector’ different? that is done by example and not by lecturing. 1960s. Silkscreen on paper. 60 x 50 cm. Right: Robert Rauschenberg. (Detail) There is a difference between a collector and an Untitled from the Arcadia series. 1981. Silkscreen and collage on paper. 58 x artist collector – the latter collects with a wholly So what’s next? 40 cm. Edition 26 out of 85. different eye, because they want to be inspired I would like to open a private museum, but things Above from left to right: when they see something original, as opposed in Iran are still so unsettled. I’m documenting Sohrab Sepehri. Untitled. Circa 1960. Gouache on paper. 70 x 50 cm; Farhad to being chronological and wanting to fill in and eliminating, not because works aren’t good Moshiri. Untitled. 2001. Mixed media on canvas. 185 x 150 cm; Charles Hossein gaps in a collection. I try to find something to- but because I have 25 of something. I’m keeping Zenderoudi. Untitled. 1975. Silkscreen. 60 x 80 cm; Shirin Neshat’s special edition for tally inventive, totally individual. They aren’t nec- the very best and letting go of the rest. I think my the fundraising of the Ardeshir Mohassess show at the Asia Society, New York, New essarily their best works, but those I see the most vision, my taste, is different from other people’s. York. 2008. Ink on photography. 30 x 40 experimentation and growth in. When people buy from my collection, they’re cm; Shahla Hosseini Barzi. Untitled. Circa. 1980. Graphite. 60 x 80 cm. On the floor: getting my expertise plus the work itself. I’m also Bita Fayyazi. Cockroaches. Circa 1990. Mixed media and ceramic. 15 x 5 cm. What advice would you offer to collectors? going to give works to the Zoroastrian Cultural Unlimited edition. I believe in being an example. I have become less Centre in Paris and try to put together cohesive All photography by Cathy Bistour. interested in collecting ever since everything’s exhibitions that could travel. I’m getting younger become so much more expensive. I’m with- curators and have a programme with the private drawing a great deal from the nurturing thing as museum concept of training curators. My recent well, because fortunately Iranian Contemporary heart operation turned my life around in the art has reached a point where it can nurture it- sense that I nearly died. I feel this is a meditative self. I used to be, at the start of the Revolution, period on what is really essential: my survival. 79 RAMIN & ROKNI HAERIZADEH 80 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT About 15 years ago, Iranian artist brothers Rokni – and while that is a philosophy they still Ramin and Rokni Haerizadeh (Canvas 5.6) bought practice, the brothers also acquire works by up- their first major artwork – a lithograph by Bah- and-coming international artists. Growing up, man Mohasses (Canvas 6.6). At the time, Rokni’s Ramin collected stamps, currency, books and SPECIAL FEATURE works on paper were priced as low as $10 while magazines; Rokni collected miniature toy animals, works by Ramin were sold for around $90 during comic books and movies. “It’s important to col- Facing page: Rokni and Ramin Haerizadeh in their Dubai his first exhibition. “And the little money we made lect,” adds Ramin, “somehow you freeze time in apartment. (Clockwise) David Hockney. Jamie McHale # 1. 2008. was put towards buying art and we were always doing so and it becomes a memory that you keep Inkjet printed computer drawing in debt!” laughs Ramin. “We always believed that with you always.” on paper. 125 x 86 cm; Hesam Rahmanian. Goose. 2011. Acrylic whatever we earned from our art should be spent Pieces in the Haerizadeh collection reign su- on paper. 55 x 78 cm; Houshang Pezashknia. Agha Fazi. 1958. Ink on buying others’ art,” says Rokni. Initially, the bulk preme when it comes to placement. Ramin is and watercolour on paper. 70 x 57 cm; Ramin Haerizadeh. Dance Me of their collecting was dedicated to emerging Ira- quick to point out that “the artworks come first to the End of Love. 2010. Mixed media and collage on canvas. nian artists – “our way of supporting them,” says and then the furniture”. The brothers’ home boasts Tetraptych. Each panel: 250 x an eclectic mix of ceramics, which they’ve painted 100 cm; On table: Bita Fayyazi. Baby (Gold). 2007. Fibreglass over, ornate bowls of fresh fruit and nuts, a canoe and oil paint. 47 x 20 x 27 cm. Background: Farshid Maleki. Wish List? used as a bookshelf, long purple velvet curtains Untitled. 2008. Magic marker and Francis Alys, Paul McCartney, Walid acrylic on paper. 100 x 110 cm. and dozens of varied candelabras – all within a Hanging from the ceiling is a 2009 Raad (Canvas 5.2), Wolfgang Tillmans, hexagon light by James Clar. 220 Robert Mapplethorpe and a sculpture space carpeted in Astroturf and walls on which x 90 cm. by Louise Bourgeois. the brothers have painted murals. “We feed our Below: eyes and brains through the colours and differ- Left: Olafur Eliasson Untitled Collection future? (Yet). 2011. Watercolour on paper. Maybe a foundation. ent energies around us,” laughs Rokni, “even our 28.7 x 28.5 cm. Image courtesy dreams get complicated!” There is humour and Neugerriemschneider, Berlin. Is your home complete? playfulness in their surroundings, but certainly Right: Tala Madani. (Detail) Pink No, it never will be. Connection. 2008. Oil on canvas. a lot of creativity too. “It’s actually very tidy,” grins 30 x 24 cm. The difference between buying an artwork and a design object is: Design is more industrial. Tips on being a collector? “Artists are not race horses – when Maintain a long-term relationship with artists. you buy their work, you also buy a piece of their being.” Ramin Haerizadeh 81 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT Below: Rokni and Ramin Haerizadeh Ramin, “but also completely chaotic.” The broth- How do you ‘curate’ your surroundings? surrounded by works. From left to right: Ardeshir Mohasses. Untitled. 1985. Colour ers are equally mindful of a curatorial approach to Ramin: We like to have narratives on all the pencil on paper. 42 x 29.7 cm; Nam June Paik. Untitled. 2000. Pencil drawing their home – artworks are often grouped togeth- walls and use our imagination. Each wall has a on paper. 42 x 30 cm; George Baselitz. er to suggest narratives, but the Haerizadehs are story and sometimes a name. We’re not fans of Untitled. 2010. India ink, watercolour and acrylic on paper. 65 x 61 cm; Keith Haring. keen to rotate works whenever a new storyline putting just our own works on our walls. I think Original Erect Penis. Hand drawing over Warhol stamp. 1989. Mixed media. surfaces. “Sometimes we change everything if one enters a space, there should be a spec- SPECIAL FEATURE 5.7 x 7 cm; Louise Bourgeois. Pregnant Woman. 2007. Gouache on paper. 60 x around the house for the smallest artwork,” adds trum of all artworks to give audiences a differ- 45 cm; Tala Madani. Pink Connection. Ramin, “and we have endless discussions.” ent feeling. For us, we see energy behind such 2008. Oil on canvas. 30 x 24 cm; Nader Ahriman. Form of Self-Consciousness. a spectrum; it helps us function better and be 2004–06. Ink, watercolour and collage on paper. 29.5 x 21.5 cm; Alice Nikitinová. Why is it important to collect? able to compare. Untitled. 2011. Oil on canvas. 25 x 30 cm; Alice Nikitinová. Paper Clip. 2011. Oil Ramin: In April 2009, we were in Dubai and ad- Rokni: Our house is like an artwork, like an ex- on canvas. 40 x 20 cm; On table: Bita Fayyazi. Baby (Gold). 2007. Fibreglass vised by friends not to return to Iran [after Iranian hibition too. We thought of hanging works by and oil paint. 47 x 20 x 27 cm; On floor: officials saw their work in Saatchi’s Unveiled: New Iranian masters alongside their Western coun- Mona Hakimi Schueler. Heroic Deeds. 2009–10. Sponge and latex. 100 x 200 x 80cm. Art from the Middle East and deemed them con- terparts. This had probably never happened Facing page: troversial]. We were totally depressed and really before! So, for example, we put Mohasses Left: Mona Hatoum. Van Gogh’s Back. 1995. Photograph on paper. 60 x40 cm. felt the absence of works from our collection. Two with Louise Bourgeois or David Hockney with Edition of 15. months earlier, we were in London and bought a Ahmad Amin Nazar – the collection’s diversity Right: Billy Childish. Fallada with Wife work by Tala Madani (Canvas 7.3) and it arrived in becomes greater. The sculptures by Mohasses, (Study). 2010. Oil and charcoal on linen. 61 x 46 cm. Image courtesy of Dubai. So, there we were, with two suitcases and for example, are placed on Roman-like plinths Neugerriemschneider, Berlin. an artwork! The chairs in the hotel were getting against a mirror mosaic by Monir Farmanfar- Photography by Haider Yousuf on my nerves and we started redecorating the maian (Canvas 4.5), so it looks like a shrine, or a unless otherwise specified. room and moving the Madani piece around! memorial to him. 82 “You can tell when a house has been selected for the house or for its walls.” Rokni Haerizadeh Have you made any acquisition mistakes? Rokni: No, never. I think that happens when people think commercially. Our approach has always been about building narratives and that is why we have works by artists from different stages in their careers. What can you, as artists, see in artworks that others perhaps cannot? Ramin: Sarcasm and humour. Rokni: Different energies. Do you research before buying art? Rokni: Being artists, we are in the middle of the art scene and the reason we bought some art- ists’ works is because they’re not in the main- stream. That’s our way of supporting them and introducing them to the public. Ramin: When we like an artist’s work and feel Ramin: Collectors must stay in touch with art- own. I’ve sometimes felt like I’ve stepped into that he/she has potential, we talk about him/ ists – as an artist, you want to see where your houses featured in interior design magazines – her to different collectors whom we know. work is and get to know the collector, and as the ones that look like décor sections in Harvey a collector, you should follow artists. The Mid- Nichols or Ralph Lauren! You own a lot of works on paper. How come? dle Eastern art market is new and it makes me Rokni: We feel that drawings are very impor- angry to know that most collectors are looking Is your desire to own an artwork instant? tant; they are ‘closer’ to the artist in a sense. They for an investment rather than art. Artists are not Rokni: Yes, we know at first sight, the second it are like contemporary poems. race horses – when you buy their work, you comes into our vision. Ramin: We collect a lot of distinctive works also buy a piece of their being. Ramin: Absolutely and it doesn’t matter what on paper. the artwork or who the artist is. What about framing? How has collecting changed the way you Rokni: It’s like a performance! We choose the Where do you buy from? approach your own work? frames and sometimes, months later, change Ramin: Different galleries. If we started buying Ramin: It makes up our lives. You live with it our minds, but save them for something else! from auctions, we’d spend all our money and inside your house. All of the artworks we own Ramin: It’s like taking something to the tailor! buy everything! We follow auctions around the have been made with differnt energies and we world, especially artists whose work we own, live with that. What does someone’s home tell you about and if we find good pieces to buy at auctions, their personality? sure, why not? What would you advise collectors? Rokni: I always look at what’s hanging on the Rokni: Make sure you diversify – don’t stick to a walls first, which tells me about a collector’s Do you ever exchange artworks with country or just emerging talents, and if you buy a taste. It’s the way in which artworks are ar- other artists? work by an artist, keep following him/her. If collec- ranged. You can tell when a house has been Rokni: Yes, but most of the time, we try and tors are asked to lend a piece, they should because selected for the house or for its walls. buy, because money is important for young that’s for the art and the artists. A collector should Ramin: I look to see if artworks are being ‘tor- artists and will make them happy. And when also consider the gallery, because it is an impor- tured’ – if a work has been hung intentionally you actually pay for an artwork, you take more tant part of the whole art world mechanism. above a very expensive couch instead of on its care of it. 83 I know I should like it but I just can’t: Peanut butter and jam. NABIL NAHAS The works I could stare at for hours: My own. The artwork I will get by hook or by crook: The one I could sell for a great profit. I’d love to dine with: Describing his art collecting motto as “all over the place”, Lebanese artist Nabil Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Nahas’s (Canvas 4.6) approach to acquisitions is guided by his “moods which shift with time”. My top three art fairs: Having grown up in Egypt and Lebanon before settling in the USA in 1968 to pursue under- Art Basel, Art Basel Miami Beach and graduate studies at Louisiana State University and an MFA from Yale University, Nahas’s exten- Abu Dhabi Art. sive collection (which dates back to the 1960s) mirrors the cultural dichotomies that have af- Best art advice I ever got: fected his life. While his apartment in New York houses works by American Figurative artist “Forget everything you’ve learned and Alex Katz, the walls of his Beirut home are adorned with pieces by luminaries of the Arab art start over”. world, including Shafic Abboud (Canvas 3.2), Fateh Moudarres, Youssef Kamel and Mahmoud Said (Canvas 7.1). Although Nahas remains adamant that his purchases “do not orient towards 84 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT “I feel like my interest in artists from [the Middle East] SPECIAL FEATURE has been engraved in my subconscious, as it is part of my heritage.” a specific genre or era”, over the years, he has Modern art history early on. Then, at the age of Facing page: Nabil Nahas holding a work by Fateh amassed an impressive selection of Modern 17, I made my first art purchases in Paris – an ink Moudarres. Untitled. 1962. Oil on board. 70 x 50 cm. On Arab works, which presents a jarring contrast drawing by Henri Michaux, followed by a pastel the floor, left to right: Khalil to his own Contemporary oeuvre, sated with work by Hans Hartung and a small Max Ernst Zgheib. Chaanine. Circa 1960. Oil on masonite. 100 x colourful abstractions. When asked why he drawing. I remember these pieces bringing me 60 cm; Georges H Sabbagh. Suburbs of Cairo. 1921. Oil feels it is important to collect works by fellow tremendous pleasure when I looked at them. on canvas. 30 x 40 cm. artists, Nahas, who now lives between the USA And so, I continued acquiring works when I was Below: Left: Mahmoud Said. and Lebanon, emphasises the power of visual studying at Yale and would spend my week- (Detail) Zikir. 1934. Oil on stimulation. “Some people like to read for inspi- ends in New York City and occasionally drop canvas. 30 x 40 cm. Right: Saloua Raouda ration. I like to look,” he says. “What is wonderful by Sotheby’s, where I purchased a still-life by Choucair. Poem. 1963–65. Wood. 39 x 19 x 7.5 cm. is that each piece that I own has something dif- Auguste Herbin, a piece by Filippo de Pisis, one ferent to offer, as well as a story attached to it.” by Yves Klein and several works by Lucio Fon- tana. That is how my art collecting began. All What did you collect as a child? these names were familiar to me thanks to my When I was 12 years-old and living in Lebanon, childhood art books rampage! One must also I would spend my weekends in Byblos with my remember that these were pre-Internet days friend Roy Sarrafian and scour the cliffs looking and the art market had not yet been globalised, for beads, flint stones and pottery shards. Roy, so you could still luck out once in a while. who came from a family of renowned antiquar- ians, initiated me to this genre so I slowly began How did works by Middle Eastern artists collecting these objects. The idea of owning start featuring in your collection? and handling such ancient items was, and still I feel like my interest in artists from the region is, fascinating to me. Were your parents art collectors? My parents were not ‘collectors’ per se, but they would buy paintings to hang on the walls of the house. Looking back, they had very good works, although not by any means Avant-garde; they were mostly by artists such as Georges Sabbagh and Said. How did you educate yourself about art? Pioneer Lebanese Abstract painter Yvette Achkar is my mother’s first cousin, so both she and her paintings were very much around! I also began buying art books at a very young age, which meant that I had a strong knowledge of 85 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT has been engraved in my subconscious, as it is SPECIAL FEATURE part of my heritage. The first work I purchased by a Lebanese artist was a painting by Khalil Zgheib, who was one of the greatest Lebanese artists of our time. Unfortunately, I lost that work! I also had several pastels by Paul Guira- gossian (Canvas 2.4), which were lost during the war. When I went back to Lebanon in the 1990s after a 20-year absence, I purchased an apartment and filled it with art and furniture pertaining to the region. I acquired Orientalist paintings by the likes of David Roberts, Alex- andre Descamps, Eugène Fromentin, Alexan- dre Bida and William Woodward. On the Arab front, I purchased pieces by Daoud Corm, Sal- oua Raouda Choucair (Canvas 2.1), Omar Onsi, Saliba Douaihy, Bibi Zoghbi and Georges Cyr, to name a few. What does your purchasing process entail? I buy on the whim of the moment; I don’t search for artworks, I stumble upon them. I absolutely have no rules that determine what kind of art I surround myself with, but I never look at it as an investment. What grabs you in an artwork? Art is a visual and plastic language so it is very difficult for me to verbalise why I gravitate towards a certain piece. Sometimes I feel as though the work is just there waiting for me. Art is a bit like magic, it has a life of its own and its appeal is unexplainable. As an artist, what do you think the role of a collector is? There are several levels of collecting, as there are several levels of art. It is important for a seri- ous collector not to be a ‘fashion victim’, which means not to buy what everybody else owns because it is à la mode. A great collector buys with his eyes, not his ears. Collectors are also supposed to be educators, and ideally, an intel- 86 ligently put together collection should be given to an institution and shared with the public. What future plans do you have for your collection? I am thinking of eventually turning my studio in Ain Aar in Lebanon into a foundation. But I am going to keep the art to myself for another 15 years before turning it into a public collection. I need more time to paint without interference! Whose art advice do you take and trust? My own. I absolutely go by my own judgment and it has proven me right so far! So you don’t regret any acquisitions? No, I haven’t made any mistakes over acquisi- tions because I buy things that I like, never what is fashionable. I always go against the grain. Do you ever purchase a work as a way of endorsing the artist? Only if I am truly convinced by it. For example, very early on, I could tell that Ayman Baalbaki “At this point, I am also more (Canvas 5.2) was a great painter. Ever since Saleh Barakat [Agial Art Gallery Founder] showed me interested in what is coming up in the his works, I knew that Baalbaki was going to Middle East rather than the West as go a long way. I am hoping to build up my col- lection of Contemporary Middle Eastern art, as the works feel fresher.” there are still many great artists whose works I would like to own. What are your thoughts on the current Facing page: Above: Saliba Douaihy. View of Contemporary art scene in Lebanon? Beiteddine. 1938. Oil on canvas. 38 x 48 cm. How has your attitude to collecting I think it is extremely interesting and lively, Below: Nabil Nahas holding a work changed over the years? given the outstanding number of emerging by Moustafa Khalidy. Untitled. 2010. Acrylic on canvas. 50 x 70 cm. When I started collecting, the works were artists living there at the moment. I also think Above: mostly by European and American artists such that there is a general interest in the arts that is Left: Background: Nabil Nahas. Untitled. 1987. Acrylic on canvas. as Auguste Herbin, Jean Dubuffet, André Mas- booming right now over there, and that hasn’t 150 x 300 cm. On buffet: Jean Royere. son, Jean Fautrier, Fontana, Mardsen Hartley, always been the case. Although my parents’ Fragment of a Phoenician bust. Late 14th-century, Ming Dynasty. Chinese Thomas Eakins and Arshile Gorky. Now, in New generation was involved in the arts, mine, the porcelain. Variable dimensions. Right: Youssef Kamel. Egyptian Boy. York, I am mostly focused on works by Katz. At war generation, was not. Now, when I look at Circa 1930. Pastel on carton. 40 x 30 cm. this point, I am also more interested in what is my nephew’s generation, I am pleased to see All photography by Mansour Dib. coming up in the Middle East rather than the that there is a renewed interest and a very seri- West as the works feel fresher. ous one at that. 87 ADEL SIWI Siwi received his real artistic training and was introduced to the art of collecting. Through his work in the studio of Italian artist Renzo Ferrari, Siwi became exposed to a whole new world of intellectuals, artists and collectors – experi- Egyptian artist Adel Siwi (Canvas 7.5) ences which led him to appreciate the ‘magi- collects works of art based on a “feeling they cal unconscious energy’ of a work of art. After I should buy but can’t: David Hockney or Francis Bacon. transmit”. He will readily narrate the story be- spending 10 years in Italy, he returned to Egypt, hind each acquisition in his collection and how where he continues to make the dreamy ab- The first thing I do when I buy an artwork is: it was spurred by a particular sentiment. “Art per- stract landscapes of the people and places of Bring it directly to my studio. meates my unconscious. It transmits a message his homeland. Within his homes both in Cairo Favourite work of art that I own is: and gives me inspiration every day. I appreciate and in the Egyptian countryside, Siwi surrounds Monir Kanaan’s Crosses and Ahmed an artwork for its beauty. I am not in pursuit of himself with works by his mentors, renowned Askalany’s Hepo. its value or the name of the artist who produced Modern and Contemporary Egyptian artists What I look for in a work of art is: it,” he adds. Pieces in Siwi’s collection, he says, such as Hani Rashed, Monir Kanaan, Hassan Unconscious attraction. continue to surprise him and consistently offer Soliman and Ahmed Askalany; artists with Favourite museum: new narratives. whom he has forged strong friendships and The Archaeological Museum in Cairo. Originally trained as a doctor, Siwi left his whose artistic explorations continue to influ- career in medicine to pursue life as an artist. ence his oeuvre. I love walking through: New York’s Museum of Modern Art. In 1979, he abandoned his work in Cairo as a doctor specialising in psychiatry and left for Why do you collect art? Italy in 1980. It was while living in Milan that I’ve never been interested in buying art for the 88 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT sake of buying art. There’s a picture of Picasso turned from Italy, he became a good friend of in my studio surrounded by African and Asian mine for 20 years until his death. He gave me art. The way in which his artworks are placed a collage with letters which are repeated three SPECIAL FEATURE around him is nice, as they are real mate- times. The small things create a great work of art; rial sources for inspiration; their very presence they become something magical. Soliman was around Picasso helped him to make his art. Art another great influence on my work. Through permeates your unconscious; it becomes a part his oeuvre, he taught me how to explore move- of your being without a real effort to make it ment, stability and the creation of figures with a so. You simply need to have art around you. robust central form. Soliman says many things You must be surrounded by artwork which in- through his pieces; he transmits a lot of feel- spires you. Your eyes look at these works of art ing and this is why I like his work around me. every day. I initially began collecting art from It becomes magical for me. Askalany is impor- young artists to help launch their careers. For tant for me because he exhibited with me at me, buying art from these artists was a gesture the Venice Biennale in 2009. He brings luck Facing page: Adel Siwi in of solidarity. I am not a real art collector in the in his work and often reveals animals, such as front of his 2011 What About true sense. I love these things. I feel that I am hippos – animals which are becoming extinct Flowers. Mixed media on canvas stretched on wood. contributing to a tradition of a tradition. and yet continue to live and breathe through his 240 x 200 cm. work – they almost have the spirit of babies or Below: Left: Hany Rashed. Untitled. What do you consider are some highlights small children. Askalany’s work speaks about 2008. Monoprint. 23 x 20 cm. in your collection? life to me. His artwork gives me a lot of positive Right: Ahmed Askalany. Hepo Two. 2009. Bronze. Kanaan is a great Egyptian painter. When he re- energy every morning. 25 x 17 x 10 cm. “I am not at all interested in names; I don’t want to have a collection of names that represent status.” 89 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT SPECIAL FEATURE “You need to fall in love. Don’t listen to gossip about the importance of buying a certain artist.” Do you believe you approach the art of The presence and expression of an animal is full collecting in a different manner from the of significance for me. Even though I don’t have average collector? the language to speak with them, I try to under- I am not at all interested in names; I don’t want stand their intentions through their gestures. I to have a collection of names that represent find their expression very beautiful because it status. I want my works of art to be intimate; is made up of emblems. While human beings I want something to breathe under my eyes. communicate primarily through the spoken I want true beauty to be near me. I recently word, animals use the physical body which al- bought a work which depicts the revolution lows them to act more spontaneously. Animals of 25 January. There is a flag in represent surprise to me - you never know what one of the figure’s hands and will happen. It is precisely this element of sur- the work highlights the genuine prise - or tackling of the unknown - which I like to spirit of Egypt during the revolu- incorporate within my work. Moreover, animals tion. It is a work of great personal have a special place in Egypt. During the 1930s, significance for me. Italian futurist artist Filippo Tommaso Marian- etti wrote Fascino nel Egitto (Fascination with How do pieces from your Egypt), in which he noted that he often saw collection fit at home? buffalos in Egypt and that they were animals I have no preference. I put always deep in thought. The thinking of an the works all over, especially animal is a physical movement – it has a where there is an empty physical presence. The presence of the body space. Sometimes I’ll prefer to in a sculptural work is something real, it carries put a certain work in a partic- significant weight. ular place. I have many works from my wife, who collects art. How do you maintain your collection? She buys beautiful things but There is no specific way I maintain my collec- has a different manner of col- tion. I put my drawings under glass. I do try and lecting and displaying them. I take care of my oil paintings with various tem- focus more on the energy and peratures. A work of art has a destiny like a hu- inspiration that the artworks man being; there is something poetic and yet bring to my work. When you mortal about it as well, no matter how much buy a work of art, it is almost you take care of it. like you are becoming a child again. You become so excited! How do you want to grow your collection? I love works depicting animals. I have no need for it to be a certain size. 90 Facing page: Mohammed Abla. Snake and Ladder. 1995. Ceramic. Height: 4 cm. Left: Above: Monir Kanan. Crosses. 1985. Collage on paper. 55 x 40 cm. Below: Adel Siwi holding Alaa Al-Harthy’s 2009 wooden Head. 42 x 17 x 12 cm. Why collect another’s person’s artwork when you are surrounded by your own? You need to buy an artwork because you love it and because it adds something to you. What are your hopes for the collection? My collection doesn’t represent anything specif- ic; I don’t want it to go public. It is just for me. I have no particular hopes. I buy artworks as they come to me. What do you look for in an artwork? I just really like looking at a work of art. It doesn’t have to have a certain story attached to it, be- cause it is always telling me stories. It needs to be beautiful and this will prompt my desire to purchase it. Any particular pointers you have when buying art? You need to fall in love. Don’t listen to gossip about the importance of buying a certain artist. You need to be ‘available’ or ‘ready’ for a certain artist. Don’t buy things just because they go well in your home and don’t buy for the sake of monetary investment. When you feel the value of something, it also means it is the right time - similar to an Italian expression which says that one must feel the value of an object just as hunters intuit the presence of their catch. For me, a real collector, like a hunter, buys a work of art because he loves it, because he needs it.’ 91 FADI YAZIGI Tensions may be running high in paintings, sculptures and photography, he also Collecting tips? Always listen to your heart and make politically unstable Syria, but Damascene artist appreciates ceramics and carpets and is quick to sure you’ve read enough. Fadi Yazigi (Canvas 4.2) has hopes for a brighter cite lots in past and upcoming auctions, as well future, and one that will eventually include a as those in public institutions.“Looking at carpets I’d love to dine with: Antoni Gaudí. museum dedicated to Contemporary Syrian art. feels like walking into another world,” he admits. “It really is a dream,” he stresses, “and for a coun- Shortly after his first exhibition in Damas- Wish List? A 12th-century Mamluk ceramic plate try with such an old history like Syria, it would be cus, Yazigi began collecting artworks mainly by at the V&A, a sketch by Rodin, a work wonderful to see its Contemporary artists cel- Arab artists. However, his acquisitions strategy by Mouddares from the 1960s, Mustafa Farroukh, Shafic Abboud (Canvas 3.2), ebrated through a museum showing their art.” has changed over the years and he now buys Frank Auerbach, Mahmoud Hammad Yazigi believes that art collecting is essential, more works by emerging artists. “It is a form of and Oskar Kokoschka. so much so that he has encouraged his broth- support,” he says, “even if I don’t necessarily like I know it’s mine because: er-in-law to start doing so – “especially what- some pieces, I still take collectors to meet these It’s instant and my heart starts to beat ever I couldn’t afford, and that way, I can still young talents and help their careers.” As far as more strongly. enjoy them!” While Yazigi’s collection includes being a collector goes, Yazigi believes in dia- 92 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT logue and stresses the importance of discuss- small gouache work by Fateh Moudarres and I SPECIAL FEATURE ing works, movements and influences. “It is es- gave it to my sister for the birth of her son. sential to converse!” he emphasises, “new ideas can be shared, new perspectives can be seen, Is there a medium you prefer? new possibilities can emerge, the list is endless.” Not specifically, but I do love paintings, sculptures Much as he may be dedicated to his own artis- and carpets; the latter being more of a hobby tic practice, Yazigi’s collection offers him contin- really. I feel like carpets are similar to paintings. uous inspiration on a daily basis. “My collection may be small, but it’s so special to me; it’s an Is there a particular theme to your collection? emotional attachment,” he says; “I’m proud of it Not really. Whenever I’d see a piece, I’d go home Facing page: Fadi Yazigi with (from left and it’s been bought with hard-earned money.” and think about it, then go back and buy it. I’ve to right): On the wall: Fateh Moudarres. Family from collected some small pieces of Arab art over Kalamon. 1992. Mixed media on cardboard. 35 x 50 cm; How did you begin collecting art? time and I then began buying larger works. Youssef Abdelke. Ashkhas. It’s probably the only thing I’ve ever wanted to 1992. Pastel on cardboard. 97 x 68 cm. On the floor: Monzer do and this was most likely spurred by my first What about hanging the works? Kamnakesh. Family. 2008. Bronze. Approximately 40 x 14 exhibition in 1992. I really just wanted to buy art, They’ve all got to be on my walls at some point! cm. Edition two of eight; Fadi Barraj. Untitled. 1979. Oil on even if they were small works, and I paid them Sometimes, I re-hang the works every three canvas. 50 x 80 cm; Mounir off in instalments or swapped with artists and to six months. Some never leave the walls, as Al-Shaarani. Untitled. 2005. Gouache on cardboard. 100 x galleries. I have to say, money was never a fac- I must see them always, like certain pieces by 70 cm; Ismael Fattah. Untitled. 1988. Print. 100 x 70 cm. tor in deciding to acquire works – the galleries Moudarres, Youssef Abdelke, Nazir Nabaa and Below: I bought from were supportive, and sometimes Elias Zayat. As in my own work, I orient towards Left: Fateh Moudarres. whatever I earned from my shows went direct- simplicity. My wife gives me a lot of freedom Untitled. 1971. Ink on paper. 22 x 18 cm. ly to buying other pieces. I bought what I love and always says the walls are mine! Whether Right: Nazir Nabaa. Untitled. 2002. Mixed media on canvas. and I still do. The first artwork I purchased was a pieces are big or small, I allocate a wall for 13.5 x 18 cm. “Whatever I’ve bought, I’ve bought with my heart. ” 93 ARTISTS WHO COLLECT Below: each one, as I like to give it some ‘breathing and also be interpreted differently to different From left to right: Safwan Dahoul. Rêve. 1998. Acrylic on space’. Maybe I have classical taste, but visually, people. Some collectors have ‘the eye’. canvas. 110 x 110 cm; Zoheer Dabbagh. Girl. 1982. Bronze. 40 I don’t like anything disrupting my view of a x 20 x 20 cm; Ammar Al-Beik. work and prefer to ‘grasp’ the piece each time Any collecting regrets? Serial Artist. 2008. Photo print. 110 x 85 cm. On the table: Ali I look at it. None. Whatever I’ve bought, I’ve bought with Taleb. Untitled. 2007. Mixed media on cardboard. 50 x 70 cm; my heart. I have never exchanged or sold pieces. SPECIAL FEATURE Shakeeb Bashkan. Untitled. 2007. Ceramic. Variable dimensions. What about framing? Edition three of eight. I always make sure it’s a very simple frame. I Do you believe that an artwork has a destiny? Facing page: don’t like anything fancy, because I don’t want I believe that artworks have value, but that Left:Rida Hus-Hus. Untitled. 2005. Oil on canvas. 120 x 80 cm. anything to detract from the actual work. value is not given instantly. Then again, exactly Right: Shakeeb Bashkan. Untitled. 2007. Ceramic. Variable who provides this value is relative. However, I dimensions. Edition three of eight. Do collectors ask you for advice? do believe I can see an artwork’s potential – I All photography by Jaber Al-Azmeh. Yes, lots do. They listen to my suggestions be- feel its voltage and electricity. cause I feel that, as an artist, I understand what a collector is after – they differ in their wants – Why have you focused on Arab art? but I can also see beyond an artwork’s aesthet- Frankly, it’s not because it’s Arab art per se, it’s ics and assess its ‘worth’, so to speak. I can feel really about artists I personally know whose an artwork’s soul and so can delve deeper into thinking, intellect and approach appeals to me. its meaning. You develop a special relationship That said, there are some works by Iranian art- with an artwork – it can speak many languages ists, which I love, as well as Contemporary Turk- 94 “I’m glad to see the Middle Eastern art scene pick up; as artists, we had never been supported in this manner ish and 18th-century European art. I think Luc- Has the collection evolved over time? ien Freud’s sketches for example, are amazing, Yes it has. I used to buy works by my profes- but unfortunately, I can’t afford any! sors, but I now buy pieces by emerging artists whose works I feel have beauty and happiness; What are your hopes for the collection? one can sense that these artists are discover- My two children can split it between them or, ing themselves through such works, it feels like in the event that they don’t want to own it, I’d there’s an intent to uncover and unearth and love for it to be donated to a museum, pref- this reminds me of myself in the beginning. erably one in Syria. I wouldn’t mind if it goes elsewhere, provided it is an institution which What are your thoughts on the Middle is enthusiastic about Middle Eastern and Eastern art scene? Syrian art. Some pieces in this genre are beautiful, but some are basically copies, and I hate that. The original Have you considered insuring it? work was someone else’s feelings and inspiration I depend on God for insurance! But I always and it isn’t fair to take that away. It was a true re- keep the works protected, bubble-wrapped flection, but one now reduced to a fake. However, and stored in a temperature-controlled space works are improving and awareness is on the rise. at home. I’m glad to see the Middle Eastern art scene pick up; as artists, we had never been supported in this Do you ever ask anyone for advice when manner before and I’m happy to see that our art buying art? is crossing borders. I know we’re still at the early Sometimes, but I always ask afterwards and never stages but I also believe that it’s important for us before buying a work! I have a friend whose opin- to be knowledgeable, educated and have a back- ion matters to me and we debate and talk end- ground in art history. People should read a lot lessly. In many respects, I am my own adviser. more and educate themselves. 95 WR ITT EN BY MY RN RE AA BE YA AN CC D• NA A AN TA LA WA NE CH LLA PR UK CE O CT RI -TH OR • OM • PS ON
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