Letters in Memory of Sultanie 1995

Samia Halaby made *Letters in Memory of Sultanie* as a kind of abstract eulogy using paint, brushes and probably a whole lot of feeling. The thing that grabs me here is the way these marks, these looping lines, build up such a thick surface, like sediment on a riverbed. Look closely, and you’ll see how some of the lines are really bold, almost leaping out, while others are shy, peeking through from underneath. I imagine Halaby layering them one on top of the other, each one a different thought or memory, all swirling together in a beautiful mess. See that big, swooping black line near the middle? To me, that’s like the main melody of the painting, everything else dancing around it, echoing its curve and energy. It makes me think of Joan Mitchell, another painter who wasn't afraid to let her emotions fly across the canvas. With a piece like this, we can appreciate how art helps us remember, not with perfect clarity, but with the vibrant, messy truth of feeling.