Since the late 1980s, Dahoul’s Dream series has explored the physical and psychological effects of alienation, solitude, and longing that punctuate the human experience at various stages in life. Partly autobiographical, this seminal body of work uses the formal properties of painting to recreate the subconscious sense of enclosure that surfaces during times of crisis, whether in the event of mourning, estrangement, or political conflict.
Moving away from the romanticism of dreams and its shelter, Safwan and his alter ego have awoken after placing his voice in what seems to be a more lifelike environment metaphorically. Reality and its inconsistency are mirrored in the canvas through sharper lines and, most importantly, folds and ripples, illustrating life’s obstacles.
The artist is posing questions through disfiguration and distortion, stressing hardship and troubles while leaving some space for hope and answers. As the artist explains it, his paintings are his life’s chronicles. The artist’s loss of stability inspired this previous series. Explicitly, and unintentionally the artist found himself tackling displacement through crumbled images; with his ripples, the artist explores uncertainty through the imperfect reflection of contemporary humanity.
In his latest work, Safwan has reached a point of surrender. Both protagonist and artist have found peace and tranquility. The sharpness and violence that fillled Safwan's work have decreased formally and metaphorically. Dahoul's symbolism is enhanced in this new body of work but especially in the diptych. The figure is slowly finding its way out of the chaos, progressively letting go of the knife into the abyss, the unknown. Decades into his career, Safwan is no longer dreaming, on the contrary, he has found a sense of calm in the face of reality.