Dead or Alive
Dead or Alive
By Nayla Kilzi
In Artworks
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Item details:
▸ Features: Handmade Unique Piece▸ Materials: Canvas
▸ Art technique: Acrylic Painting
▸ Dimensions (cm): 40.0 x 50.0 x 2.5
▸ Net Weight (kg): 1.0
This piece explores the tension between presence and absence, identity and anonymity. The layered silhouettes, set against a textured red background, symbolize the struggle between connection and detachment in human relationships. The interplay between dark and light tones reflects the complexity of our embodied experiences, shaped by history, trauma, and personal narratives. Some figures appear solid, while others fade into the background, illustrating the fluidity of identity and the lingering presence of those who came before us. The work encourages viewers to contemplate how personal and collective histories shape our realities, aligning seamlessly with the Embodied Realities exhibition theme.
According to Embodied Realities Exhibition curator Dr. Pamela Chrabieh, "this artwork powerfully conveys the body as a site of transformation, shaped by both past and present influences. The contrast between visibility and invisibility reflects the way bodies carry the weight of memory, mirroring the exhibition’s focus on the continuous negotiation of identity and existence".
Production year: 2021.
About Nayla Kilzi
Nayla Kilzi (b. 1970) is a Lebanese-Canadian artist who was born in Beirut.
Her talent and passion for art were evident at an early age, when she began drawing as a child. As a young student, she often found herself sketching the faces of her fellow school friends in her notes in class. On the advice of her father, Nayla decided to keep her art as a hobby in her younger years and chose, instead, to study Computer Science. She gained a BSc from the University of Montreal in Canada, having travelled abroad to study, and remained there after graduating, working in data analysis in the commercial sector.
Nayla returned to Lebanon in 1997, where the family business and domestic life kept her busy for several years. However, in 2017, with a little more time on her hands, Nayla found herself in a position to revive her passion for art. Having set herself up in a studio, she took several courses and began painting.
Nayla works in acrylic on canvas, sketching first and then painting her subjects. Her overriding theme is the human face, and profiles in particular, in a hark- back to her early days of drawing. Perhaps also in a nod to her career in computer science, she is fascinated with the concept of repetition, reproducing her profiles in varying numbers and proximity across the canvas. Her method and focus reflect the deep connection she feels with humanity and the Lebanese people in particular, both nationally and at a community level in the Gemmayzeh district where she lives. These connections were particularly evident in the aftermath of the tragic Beirut Port explosion of 2020, when she witnessed a poignant coming together of the residents in the neighbourhood to support each other.
Nayla's Connection series of paintings (2017) reflects her sentiments and the broader philosophy that the world's entire population shares a connection of some sort, however distant or far-reaching.
Her use of a bold, rich palette, meanwhile, reveals the influence of the heavyweights that have influenced her oeuvre, including the French artist and sculptor Paul Gaugin. These vibrant colours are evident in the Dreams series (2019), which is marked by added energy and depth.
Nayla's work was featured in a collective exhibition in May 2019 titled 'Art Creation' held at the Emmanuel Guiragossian Museum, Jdeideh, Lebanon.
Today, she continues to live and work in the Gemmayzeh district of Beirut, Lebanon.