Although Thaier Helal is based in Sharjah, the Assi river and the Syrian soil of his homeland cling to his practice. Landmarks II, his current show in Alserkal Avenue’s Ayyam Gallery features large round and square sculptural paintings made from sand, glue, paint and fragments of found objects like bones and shells. These can be seen as geological layers, where nature and humanity have evolved over the aeons to tell stories of beauty, war, consumption, and decay. The artist does have his own inspirations and points of reference, but he wants visitors to evoke their own associations and memories of mountains, forests, deserts, bodies of water - planet earth at its rawest.
Helal is well known throughout the region and beyond for his abstract works, having exhibited in London and Seoul. He also mentors local artistic talents in his role as professor at the Fine Arts College in Sharjah. This show is a follow up to 2014's Ayyam outing in DIFC, and is part of the artist's Mountain and River series. The ugly staying power of man-made plastics is suggested in Illusion (2016). Bits of stubborn waste in blue and red gleam among the organic sands. I had just visited Richard Allenby-Pratt's incredible images of nature under siege in The Anthropocene at nearby Gulf Photo Plus, so I was finely tuned to Helal's work referencing human detritus and its indelible effects on the earth.
Mirage (2016) flashes plenty of gold, a reminder of the treasures deep down perhaps? But there is black and red splattered on top, possibly telling another story of conflict and futility. The artist is interested in the illusions that life throws at us, and how we evolve to meet them, or how they defeat us. Helal manages to stack his mixed media horizontally and appears to defy gravity in parts, especially apparent when you look side-on. Some of the ridges jut out and over the canvas, like giant braille sharing the secrets of the land. The works are mostly immaculately level, apart from Abyss, 2016, where the bumpy lines flow like waves from the top corner diagonally. Water, 2016 throws shadows on the surrounding walls, bearing a striking resemblance to a modern city skyline. Throne of Water I and II conjure up aquatic shimmer, in a masterful way that brings Monet to mind.
* Landmarks II is on until March 4 in Ayyam Gallery, Alserkal Avenue. www.ayyamgallery.com
Anya Stafford is a guest writer for The Art Blog. She has been writing on arts and culture in the Middle East for three years. She's also worked and lectured on communications, arts and technology with the likes of Google and Goldsmiths University London. She is studying for an MFA in Media through the National College of Art and Design, she also holds an MSc in Interactive Digital Media from Trinity College, both from Dublin, Ireland. Find out more about her and read her work at www.anyastafford.com
