It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.

Il Faut Cultiver Son Jardin , 2015

Mixed media on canvas

150 x 130 cm

Patrick Altes, of French and Spanish heritage, was born in Algeria and, following Algeria's independence, joined the exodus to France. Since then, he has lived extensively in Ecuador, South America, and most recently in the United Kingdom. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that Altes finds it very complex to explore a sense of identity stemming from his cultural background. Still, he does not shy away from this exploration in his artistic practice.

Altes’ response to his intricate heritage and origins is evident across various series and mediums; he employs acrylic and household paint as well as water, inks, and unrefined pigments derived from clay, sand, and spices, which examine the uncomfortable and ambivalent notion of birthright and the diaspora’s shifting, uncertain attitudes towards belonging, dispossession, and migration.

He has received the prestigious Leverhulme Trust Award twice and has been widely exhibited in numerous public and private collections in the MENA region, including the Bahrain Art Fair, Algerianism 1 at the Nour Festival, and The Bridge in France in 2015. In 2016, he exhibited with Lahd Gallery at Art16 in "Trips to Colourful Thoughts" and "Africa My Africa: Connecting Boundaries" and was nominated for the 7th edition of the Prix Picket Award.

Screen-printing on paper

108 x 93 cm

Limited Edition

2013

Hend Al-Mansour is a Saudi American cardiologist who has transitioned into an artist.

She obtained a Master of Fine Arts from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and also completed a Master of Art History at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Inspired by her interest in pre-Islamic art, her thesis examined the mid-twentieth-century shift in henna art in her hometown of Hofuf, Saudi Arabia.

Al-Mansour creates a series of screen-prints and works on large sheets of fabric or paper. Her art reflects the female culture of her hometown and is influenced by Arabic and Islamic aesthetics, addressing gender politics in the Arab world.

Her prints and installations in vibrant colours incorporate stylised figures, Arabic calligraphy, Islamic architecture, Sadou (Bedouin style) designs, and henna. Hend Al Mansour has exhibited in solo exhibitions and group shows from Saudi Arabia to Minneapolis.

She was awarded the McKnight Fellowship in 2018 and co-founded the group Arab Artists in the Twin Cities.

Additionally, she was a member of the Arab American Cultural Institute in Minnesota, where she worked to promote the understanding and expression of Arab culture in the West.

Al-Mansour was represented by Lahd Gallery at the Singapore Art Fair in 2014 and Le Salon de Lahd in 2015.