BLOCK PARTY
ZEINAB SAAB
8/21/23 – 12/15/23
Dengerink Gallery, VDEN Building
Block Party, Zeinab Saab, Acrylic on paper, 2023
“Block Party demonstrates the limitless nature of design using color theory and the grid, providing unapologetically loud, inescapable visual pleasure. Titles of works allude to distress, past trauma, frustration, feeling lost, and fear of the unknown. Pairing these difficult ideas with lush color creates a deflection of reality, allowing the viewer to take temporary refuge in a world of vibrant delusion. The grid becomes a “safety net” that catches moments of euphoria, whether major or minor. Now, when it feels like we are all on the precipice of collapse, the grid gathers and gives structure to these fleeting moments of joy. Allow yourself to be held in place for a moment, and enjoy the party while it lasts.” – Zeinab Saab
Block Party (detail), Zeinab Saab, Acrylic on paper, 2023
Originally from Dearborn, Michigan, Zeinab Saab is currently based in Portland, Oregon, where they are a professor of art at Portland Community College, Sylvania Campus. Their current work focuses on exploration of childhood nostalgia through color theory and the grid. Saab received a BFA in Printmaking and Drawing from Bowling Green State University in 2015, and an MFA in Printmaking at Northern Illinois University in 2019. Their work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at The Sharjah Museum, Cue Art Foundation, and the San Francisco Center for the Book, among other venues. The work is held in permanent collections, including those of The University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Emory University, The Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, the Arab American National Museum, and Zayed University.
Smelling the Sound of Color, Zeinab Saab, Acrylic on paper, 2023
Smelling the Sound of Color (detail), Zeinab Saab, Acrylic on paper, 2023