An Article by A. V. (643 words, 3 min. read)
Where Color Breathes Memory At Nadine Fayad Art Gallery
In the quiet, resonant space of Nadine Fayad Art Gallery, something indescribable unfolds. The Darwich has returned — but this time, he is no longer merely a character. He is a soul, a vibration, a living memory of the Lebanese people, suspended in bursts of color and forms that defy traditional artistic categories.
Beyond Form – The Inner Language of Rifai
Raouf Rifai, a master of gesture and heart, steps away from pure figuration in this latest body of work to reinvent his Darwich through an abstraction steeped in humanity. It is neither realism, nor surrealism, nor expressionism. It is something more intimate, more bare, more truthful. What we witness is not a painting, but a projection of memory — that of a people, through the inner eye of an artist who refuses to be confined by labels. Rifai no longer paints the Darwich — he lets him emerge, like an ancestral breath.
A Carnival of Souls – The Many Faces of the Darwich
In this powerful new series on view in Achrafieh, the Darwich appears in a multitude of incarnations — each one more vivid, layered, and emotionally resonant than the last. There is the Darwich Ice Cream, who evokes nostalgia and fleeting sweetness, a character that carries both joy and fragility. There is the Darwich Abou Chanabet, embodying the street vendor’s resilience and dignity, while the Darwich Abou El Abed channels popular satire and everyday wit. Darwich Love reveals a quiet tenderness rarely spoken aloud, and the Carnival of Darwich bursts into view with color, rhythm, and collective spirit — a celebration of multiplicity, of belonging, of life itself.
But Rifai is not merely painting characters — he is abstracting their essence, distilling their physical presence into gestures, rhythms, and textures that speak directly to the soul. Through this process, the Darwich becomes less about visual identity and more about emotional presence. The familiar features dissolve into bold brushstrokes and radiant color fields, allowing the viewer to feel the depth of these personas — their history, their humor, their struggle, their joy — on an intuitive, almost spiritual level. Rifai’s abstraction is not a departure from reality, but a return to its emotional core.
A Truth Beyond Style
Rifai does not seek to impress. He invites us to feel. To see the world not as it is, but as it could be through an honest, humble, and poetic gaze. His art rejects pretentiousness. It leans gently toward the ordinary man and reveals his hidden beauty. The Darwich, in all his simplicity, embodies the soul of Lebanon — resilient, colorful, complex, and real.
A Gallery That Honors the Artist’s Truth
And what better setting for such a revelation than Nadine Fayad Art Gallery? Nestled in the heart of Tabaris, the gallery breathes with light and intention. Here, there is no cold distance between artwork and viewer. The gallery itself seems to participate in the quiet conversation between artist and people. Nadine Fayad, with her passionate eye and deep respect for artists and their truths, offers more than just walls; she offers a space of transmission.
An Offering, Not Just an Exhibition
This new series, unveiled on May 8 and continuing for an entire month, is not simply an exhibition. It is an offering. An ode to resilience, to memory, to the poetry of the everyday. It is an invitation to encounter the soul of the Darwich — who has become both a mirror of a people and the unmistakable signature of an artist whose humility is his greatest strength.
With this new body of work, Dr. Raouf Rifai, in his wild freedom and rare sensitivity, reminds us that true art does not belong to any movement. It belongs to those who have something to say — and who know how to make it heard, without noise.
