Artbooth Gallery is currently hosting Beams of Light, a solo exhibition by acclaimed Lebanese-Brazilian artist Habuba Farah who is famous for her evocative use of colour, texture, and symbolic layering. The exhibition will welcome all visitors until 25 May 2025.
Beams of Light traces Farah’s artistic evolution through a curated selection of works which span from the 1970s to the present. The exhibition displays a wide range of mediums, including oil and gouache paintings, as well as pencil drawings, reflecting her long-standing engagement with colour, geometry, and movement.
Central to the show is Farah’s exploration of “neutral grey” or “coloured grey,” a tonal concept achieved by blending primary colours with their complementary opposites. These meticulously balanced compositions often resemble luminous beams, inviting viewers to contemplate subtle chromatic shifts and the interplay of light and form.
About the artist
Habuba Farah Riccetti (b. 1931, Getulina, São Paulo, Brazil) was born to Lebanese immigrant parents and began her artistic journey at an early age. Though initially trained as a geography teacher, she turned to art in the 1950s. She studied painting with Romanian modernist Samson Flexor and later honed her drawing skills under the guidance of Brazilian painter Mario Zanini.
From 1972 to 1976, Farah was an active member of the International Arts Guild (IAG) and served as a correspondent for the International Art Bulletin. During this time, she also held the role of vice-president of the Brazilian Committee of UNESCO’s International Association of Plastic Arts (AIAP).
Farah’s work is associated with Lyrical Geometric Abstraction, a style that blends formal precision with emotional resonance. Influenced by the colour theories of French chemist Michel Eugène Chevreul, she began her investigations into chromatic relationships in 1958. Her ongoing research, titled Neutrals of Color Theory, focuses on achieving delicate tonalities through the balanced mixing of complementary hues, resulting in serene, light-filled compositions that are both analytical and poetic.
Over her long career, Farah has showcased her artworks in numerous exhibitions across the world, including in Beyond Form: Lines of Abstraction, 1950–1970 (Turner Contemporary, Margate, UK, 2024); her solo show Habuba Farah at Gomide&Co (São Paulo, 2023); the 5th International Biennial of Visual Arts (Sapporo, Japan, 1991); and the XVII Joan Miró International Drawing Prize (Barcelona, Spain, 1978), among many others.
Farah has received multiple accolades: the Bronze Medal at the X World Biennial of Masters of Arts of Paris (France, 1980), Second Place at the X International Salon of Painting of Tsu (Japan, 1975), and Special Mention from the International Jury at the V International Competition of the Palme d’Or of Fine Arts (Monaco, France, 1973), to name a few. That same year, she was awarded a certificate recognising her “personal merits and dedicated service to Brazil, country of the present, the world of the future.” Her works are part of esteemed collections, such as the Guggenheim Museum Abu Dhabi and the Barjeel Art Foundation (Sharjah).
To get more information about Beams of Light, please go to the official web page of the exhibition.
In addition, you might be interested in visiting Kings and Queens of Africa: Forms and Figures of Power, an exhibition at the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
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