Salim Attaie

My country, Afghanistan, although torn by conflict, is a land of enormous beauty and humanity. Despite the daily bombings and fighting, life goes on. People go to work, children go to school and the markets are bustling with the juiciest of fruits and vegetables. The mountains, and the dawns and sunsets, are as beautiful as ever. When I first started painting my work represented the darkness of the violence and destruction in Afghanistan, a kind of ‘dark art’. But, over a period, I have become more cheerful and optimistic. I now focus on the beauty rather than the ugliness. I want to show people there is more to my country than violence. Using vivid colours, I paint bazaar scenes, landscapes, and floral scenes, among others. I mostly use oil or acrylic paint on canvasses of various sizes in a style that is best described as abstract expressionism and sometimes abstract impressionism.

No formal education

2017 Group exhibition at the Office of the President, Kabul

2017 United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA), Kabul

2018 India International Centre, New Delhi

2018 India Habitat Centre, New Delhi

2019 Reis Magos Fort, Goa