Hala Schoukair describes the long walks her mother took her on as a child in the forests of Mount Lebanon, where Schoukair was encouraged to appreciate the world of leaves and flowers and insects, to appreciate the miracle of movement, to notice nature in bloom. This is where art, education and motherhood all come together, explain one another. Schoukair’s journeys took her from New York City to Beirut to Ras el-Maten, where she spent the Covid-19 pandemic. There she took long walks in the surrounding forests, reconnecting with her childhood her mother’s lessons.
Schoukair’s work draws on a language in which the sublime is not distant but present, where the natural world is not just a backdrop but a living, breathing companion on our own voyages of reflection and self-discovery. This intimate world found its way to Schoukair’s painting, from small works in a box to the large canvases that spread and flow. She translates this experience into a tangible tapestry where each painting is a window that needs to be put up against the light. From this window, we recognise the cool shade of a tree on a summer day or the gentle pattern of raindrops, invitations to find our own moments of healing. Each brushstroke is a thread in this tapestry of wonder.
—Tarek El-Ariss
