Alif – Nail H.200 cm YAZID OULAB

Longueur : 200 cm, head diameter : 29 cm

OEUVRE

The story of his life rests on this subtlety. He is a man made up of contradictions and experiences who never considers things from a single point of view. The element that best symbolizes the work and the work of Yazid Oulab is very probably the “nail”.

As we have seen, the highlight is the link, not only between the gesture and the spirit, but also between the different worlds and eras that inspire the artist. The highlight is obviously Western culture in all its Christian mysticism, the bridge between men, Christ and God. But the highlight is also and above all for Yazid the Arab culture. It is the "Âlif", the first letter of the alphabet and the first letter of the name of Allah. It is also the first syllable of the verb "to read, to learn", the sign in spiritual terms of the transmission of the divine word and knowledge. Because this small innocuous object seems to be at the start of all things. A fundamental element of architectural constructions, it is present in many mythologies. Symbol of destiny among the Greeks, of protection among the Chaldeans or the Celts, or of power among the Gauls, it is also at the origin of the oldest form of writing, the cuneiform writing of the Mesopotamians.

ARTIST

A man with a thousand facets and an ancestral soul, Yazid Oulab is an artist who seems nourished by centuries of the most diverse and richest civilizations. He presents himself as an interpreter and a messenger, capable of analyzing and transcribing through simplified objects millennia of cultural, social and spiritual histories.

An indisputable craftsman in love with gesture, a fascinated and fascinating poet for whom the gaze gives rise to meaning, a tireless and potentially omniscient witness, Yazid Oulab embodies the figure of the accomplished artist. That of a man who, far from the excesses specific to our current societies, would be ready to give art its new letters of nobility.

His works, objects, installations, sculptures or videos are all tools of expression and communication that push us to consider the cultural plurality of our time while measuring the historical significance of everything.

More about Yazid Oulab

Exhibition

2013 Âlif-Clou H.350cm, Yazid Oulab Solo Show, FRAC Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur