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Lot Essay
Executed in 2001, Palm Tree is an iconic work from Ibrahim El-Salahi's The Tree series, an exceptional oeuvre of geometrically complexed and spiritually captivating paintings inspired by the artist's fascination for the Haraz tree growing on the banks of the Nile in Sudan. The seemingly simple composition embodies elaborate layers of symbolism: juxtaposition of the bodily and the divine, Islamic tradition and transcendence, and the overarching effort of decolonisation through abstraction. El-Salahi comments on his specific choice of subject: ‘The idea came to me about this tree called Haraz. It's a huge tree with a very soft pulp and there are legends around it. They say that Haraz tree fought against the rain. Because during the rain season and flooding of the Nile, it is completely dry, with dry leaves. Then during the droughts, it comes out with blooms and with fruit and everything. This is a definitive statement. Like saying “I am me! I am an individual! I do not follow what everyone is doing! When everyone is going to be green let them be green, I am not.” It’s individuality. I love that very much.’ (S. M. Hassan, Ibrahim El-Salahi: A Visionary Modernist, London 2013, p. 66).
The abstract way in which the tree is rendered, metaphorically links earth and heaven, the bodily and the divine, the creator and the creation. Through the use of the ruler, El-Salahi negates gesture – the artist's body is no longer felt, but an abstracted spiritual body, a transcended Divine presence. By transcending the earthly presence, The Tree series embodies the artist’s particular effort in integrating Islamic, African, Arab and Western artistic traditions and identities. Finally, through abstraction, El-Salahi reformulates native systems of communication and modernist artistic abstraction with direct stakes in the processes of decolonisation, whether cultural or de facto. With its elegant fine lines and vibrant colours, Palm Tree is a particularly outstanding canvas from the series. The work has been exhibited at Vigo Gallery in London as part of the Ibrahim El-Salahi: The Tree show in 2014.
Born in Sudan in 1930, El-Salahi is one of the most important living African artists and a key figure in the development of African Modernism today. After graduating from the Slade School in London, on his return to Sudan in 1957, he established a new visual vocabulary, which arose from his own pioneering integration of Sudanese, Islamic, African, Arab and Western artistic traditions. Tate Modern’s 2013 retrospective of El-Salahi’s work was historically the Museum’s first exhibition dedicated to Africa Modernism. His work is included in the permanent collections of important international museums, such as the Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; The Art Institute of Chicago; The National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC; The British Museum, London; Tate Modern, London; The Guggenheim Abu Dhabi; The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; Newark Museum; Sharjah Art Foundation; The National Gallery, Berlin. He currently lives and works in Oxford, England.
The abstract way in which the tree is rendered, metaphorically links earth and heaven, the bodily and the divine, the creator and the creation. Through the use of the ruler, El-Salahi negates gesture – the artist's body is no longer felt, but an abstracted spiritual body, a transcended Divine presence. By transcending the earthly presence, The Tree series embodies the artist’s particular effort in integrating Islamic, African, Arab and Western artistic traditions and identities. Finally, through abstraction, El-Salahi reformulates native systems of communication and modernist artistic abstraction with direct stakes in the processes of decolonisation, whether cultural or de facto. With its elegant fine lines and vibrant colours, Palm Tree is a particularly outstanding canvas from the series. The work has been exhibited at Vigo Gallery in London as part of the Ibrahim El-Salahi: The Tree show in 2014.
Born in Sudan in 1930, El-Salahi is one of the most important living African artists and a key figure in the development of African Modernism today. After graduating from the Slade School in London, on his return to Sudan in 1957, he established a new visual vocabulary, which arose from his own pioneering integration of Sudanese, Islamic, African, Arab and Western artistic traditions. Tate Modern’s 2013 retrospective of El-Salahi’s work was historically the Museum’s first exhibition dedicated to Africa Modernism. His work is included in the permanent collections of important international museums, such as the Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; The Art Institute of Chicago; The National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC; The British Museum, London; Tate Modern, London; The Guggenheim Abu Dhabi; The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; Newark Museum; Sharjah Art Foundation; The National Gallery, Berlin. He currently lives and works in Oxford, England.