background   ||||   philosophy  ||||   exhibits

background
I was born on August 18, 1969 in Beirut, Lebanon. Seven years later, upon noticing my interest in making messes with tempra, my mother sent me to painting classes with a popular local artist. In this studio, I wasn't allowed to use a paintbrush or pick my own colours. Rather, I had to complete a small painting with 10 pieces of cardboard squares using only 6 colours — red, yellow, blue, black, white, and crimson. Looking back at his teaching style, painting with those squares shaped my technique and precision, while the 6 colours permitted me to be the master of my palette.

Civil war and unrest forced my family to immigrate to California in 1980. During the first few years in America, I painted to fill the void of not having all the familiar with me — relatives, friends, culture — and to feel grounded amidst middle school hostility and childishness. Through the high school years, my paintings were a venue to express my feelings, solve problems, and fantasize. I still create for those same reasons.