Othman Moussa, The Long Shot
His work can be classified as poetic realism, and is based on the meticulous observation of nature and everyday objects.
Art work gallery of Othman Moussa from here...
December 2006
In late 2006, Ayyam Gallery announced a competition among young emerging syrian artists. From the more than 150 artists who applied, 10 were chosen to be represented by Ayyam Gallery. These 10 artists became the base of shabab Ayyam project and in the 2 years since the competition these artists held exhibitions in New York, Miami, Paris, Damascus, Amman, Casablanca and Dubai. They were also highlighted in numerous publications, too many to count.
Then there is othman Moussa…..
Othman applied to the competition with a few very small still life paintings on paper. Most of the other applicants applied with large canvas paintings. othman had attended smaller art schools. Most of the other candidates graduated from the top art schools in the nation and went on to graduate studies. othman never exhibited his art. Most other candidates had several exhibitions under their belt. othman was a long shot.
Two months later, othman came to the gallery with a larger still life painting that he wanted to show us. I asked him how long it takes him to create a painting of this quality and he said 2-3 months since he has other work. othman was helping his family at a bakery 12 hours a day and painting all night.
March 2007
Shabab Ayyam Incubator was born……….
othman and his father came to the gallery. After trying to convince Mr. Moussa that his son othman would be better off painting full time and leaving the bakery, a compromise was reached. othman would work in the bakery part time instead of full time. He would try to create 1 painting a month. othman was still a long shot.
March 2009
Two years and twenty paintings later, I am proud to introduce othman Moussa, the full time artist, along side one of the Arab world’s most respected artists and art critics, Asaad Arabi. When Asaad saw othman’s works and said he would like to write about him, the idea of an intra generational visual dialogue was born. This dialogue is archived in this book, which I hope you are enjoying.
Khaled Samawi
Founder, Ayyam Gallery
Damascus, Syria
