That bewildering distance between the deepest seabed and the highest cloud, the unseen limits between life and death, is depicted perfectly in Nora Baraka’s new collection of paintings in mixed media on canvas, was on show at the Picasso Art Gallery in Zamalek from 8 to 26 October.

Even though the avowed aim of the current collection is to explore the meaning of death, the paintings are cheerful and instantly captivating, evocative of children, graffiti and comics. Two tragic events in the artist’s life over the last two years inspired them: the death of an aunt and a brother; the aunt happens to be Suheir Fahmi, Al-Ahram Hebdo’s art critic. “Losing dear members of my family made me rethink this juxtaposition between life and death. It further made me unaware of my actual position, to which world should I belong? What is logical about death?” she told me at her studio in Al-Mansouriya.  

The twelve paintings on show were completed over a year and a half, and Baraka says she finished each in a little over a month. “It was like writing the diaries of a whole month in a single painting, proof that I was still alive. I poured my feelings and ideas during the month directly on the surface of canvas.” This explains the graphics of English letters and numbers, the collage of newspaper clips, which appear on the canvas surface like unique unspoken messages to her deceased loved ones. Almost all mixed media paintings are  80 x 100 cm, which makes them look like pages in a giant journal.

In each painting, there is a spontaneous composition, the figures are semi- connected either vertically, horizontally or in a spiral formation, surprising viewers with a fresh scene every time. A dialogue between two creatures is usually observed. One stunning piece depicts two funny, cartoonish figures, one bird-like and the other a ground animal, with the beige background filled with cardboard and inscriptions in gouache and acrylic pens and oil pastels, which makes the multilayered surface look very rich, a platform loaded with messages.

For the artist, the multi-layered surface denotes “the meaningful life my figures have experienced”. Baraka never draws sketches, and her paintings have that spontaneity about them. Her palette is spontaneous and emotional, chosen without a plan, so that the colours in her paintings end up having their own identity. Baraka paints directly on raw canvas.

She finds the resistance of the rough surface challenging and amusing. She prefers to paint layers of one colour on the surface of the canvas before she starts to paint, so that when she paints a blue background, for example, she knows it will be connected with some feelings or ideas inside her. “Sometimes I feel I need to paint a certain colour just to be connected to myself and my own world and music.” The artist believes in making a dialogue with the surface of the canvas. “It takes me a short while to finish the painting but it could take me weeks just sitting on a bench staring at the blank canvas before I start painting.”

A 2007 graduate of the graphics department at Faculty of Applied Arts, Baraka used to avoid still life drawing classes. She learned drawing all by herself. After her graduation, she worked for a short while in advertising, and then spent nine years teaching street children art with Caritas, a prominent non-profit organisation. Meanwhile, she joined an academic course in social psychology in order to be an art therapist. “I noticed that street children enjoyed a free life without limits and that they are very much into art,” she said. During that period she also helped children with trauma, especially those who survived wars, in Jordan and Lebanon.

In 2018, Baraka decided to dedicate herself to art full time. She was encouraged by her only child with whom she practised art as a game. Stone, Paper and Scissors was the title of her debut exhibition, also at the Picasso Art Gallery, in 2021. It featured illustrated portraits of people who survived Covid. Unusual Dreams was the title of her 2022 online collection of 16 paintings focusing on the stories that she wanted to tell her child. Baraka loves animation. Her figures often look like cartoon characters. “I like the idea that they don’t die,” she smiled.

One of her mentors was Margo Veillon, whom she had the chance to visit at her studio accompanied by her aunt Fahmi. Since then, Veillon’s paintings have inspired and influenced Baraka. Indeed, despite the difference between the two artists who belong to different generations, there is a common feature between them: the sketch-like style and their love of animals. Baraka also mentioned that she is influenced by Coptic art and naive art, especially handmade textiles and rugs from Akhmim in Upper Egypt. Another strong influence is the popular moulids she attends in the heart of the enigmatic city of Al-Khanka, where her husband’s relatives live.

The collection’s title is equally inspiring. Baraka underlined that the collection examines the lives of creatures living in the sea and in the sky. “I actually see fish and birds everywhere. For me, they are not restricted to their original habitat.” This is truly echoed in her work. Dialogue between two figures or between a figure and a motion could be easily recognised in almost all her work. Movement is a key feature. Figures of humans, robots and vehicles are constantly moving. Even the graphs and inscriptions she makes on the surface inspire movement due to their unsystematic composition on the canvas.

Although she is widely seen as a pop artist, she doesn’t believe in art schools and thinks it is just an arbitrary classification. The artist’s work could generally be viewed as narrative painting. It tells stories about her travels, personal life and her only child. “My painting is my short answer to the question, how life is treating you?” she said. One powerful piece depicts a chubby female character resembling Fahmi, with a newspaper clip collage in the background. “Despite her death, she is always in my life because she thinks life is eternal and has no end.” In some paintings, figures look like a team of actors on stage.

The canvas is literally a space to play with materials and her own created figures as well. In some paintings, Baraka would only add two tiny dots resembling eyes and leave the rest of the face vacant of any features, yet the effect is surprisingly expressive and astonishing. A 100 x 150 cm piece depicts a girl cheerfully mounting a green dinosaur heading confidently towards some unseen destination. With a rich red background, the painting exudes a sense of joy and freedom. “I look at it as a self-portrait, an attempt to discover myself, and it makes me feel I am still alive.”

In another painting, a donkey is accompanied by two human figures resembling her and her husband, the established sculptor Ahmed Qaraaly. On top of the painting she uses a yellow caution strip, like those found on the roads when car accidents occur: “The painting refers to two contradictory spaces of emotional security and loss.” She started painting it only three days after the sudden death of her brother. Vehicles appear in many paintings. The distance between two racing cars or aeroplanes could be a symbol for life risks. “I grew up loving donkeys. They are such peaceful and beautiful creatures. I love them for their significance in Coptic culture as well,” she noted.

Another painting, dated October 2023, is inspired by the start of the ongoing war between the Palestinian resistance and the Israeli occupation. It depicts two conflicting figures: a blue humanoid robot and a tank, against a blazing orange background. “My 10-year-old child paints in a brave and naive way. And I do exactly the same,” she smiled. “I don’t think I’m done with the concept yet. There is more to be said about my tragic loss.”

* A version of this article appears in print in the 31 October, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly