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The
History of a Period
On the altar of the fatherland, altar of sacrifice, its ochre color that of its soil, three holy fathers pray with their arms raised to heaven, in union with the other world, while on either side are the butchers with all kinds of ancient weapons in their hands, daggers, sickles, knives, pikes and so on, somewhat in the style of Ben Laden wearing expressions of the most barbarous, savage and criminal kind. In the background on the right there is a monastery that has been ransacked, its bell tower still standing. In the middle, far away, is a village. In the sky above three souls soar towards their Creator against whirling white and blue. With the gray and black colors of the crowd, the whole composition turns around the central sacrifice. The Last Farewell (97 x 130 cm - 1976)
This is a circular composition, with the crowd and the rocks forming a circle around a plateau. A symmetrical play divides the work into two parts, with in the center a coffin draped with the Lebanese flag and carried by six of the people. A guard and then a great crowd clamber up the rock faces to take full part in the event. Here and there some flags are scattered. A priest stands before the grave dug to receive the martyr-hero. A rich verdant plain blends into the distant mountains while a great orange sun illuminates the scene. The sky is yellow, the colors clear mauve, blue or ochre, while the crowd around wear red, blue or dark gray. The sun is setting in the evening sky, with shadows cast into the foreground, urging hope and promising a brighter future. >> Sixth Page << |
