Boats on the Beach 

Louay Kayyali’s painting, “Boats on the Beach”, is an exercise in traditional oil painting. The artist used brushes to apply layers of pigment suspended in oil onto a woven canvas surface. The material qualities of oil paint are crucial here. The way the paint sits on the canvas gives it a subtle texture, and the colors blend smoothly, creating soft shadows and reflections. The brushstrokes are not particularly visible, suggesting a focus on capturing the scene's essence rather than emphasizing the act of painting itself. But consider also what is not shown – the lives of the fisherman dependent on these boats. Fishing, like any other form of labor, has its own tools, processes, and culture, which are not apparent in the artist's work. This is a straightforward painting in the tradition of fine art, but also a statement of what the artist valued most, or chose to overlook.