Paul Guiragossian's Cherished Self-Portrait, a Symbol of Resilience, Debuts in Abu Dhabi Exhibition

The harrowing memories of the Lebanese Civil War resurface for Manuella Guiragossian, recalling moments of intense shelling and gunfire. She vividly remembers her father, the artist Paul Guiragossian, meticulously removing a particular painting from its place above the piano, treating it as if it were a family member as they rushed to safety. This act of preservation, though a small comfort amidst the chaos, puzzled the young Manuella. She couldn't comprehend why this specific self-portrait was deemed essential for survival, especially given her father's physical challenges, including using crutches after a leg injury in 1974.

Amidst the turmoil, Guiragossian's unwavering dedication to this single self-portrait might have appeared as mere artistic eccentricity to onlookers. However, for Manuella, the peculiarity lay not in her father's devotion to his art, but in his insistence on safeguarding this particular piece above all others. "I was wondering why it was this painting that was coming with us," she shared. "We are running, we are in a rush, we are trying to make it to the shelter. It is chaos, and this portrait is coming with us regardless."

This significant self-portrait is now a centerpiece of the exhibition 'Paul Guiragossian: 100 Years of Art' at Abu Dhabi's Bassam Freiha Art Foundation, running until January 17, 2027. It also graces the cover of the exhibition's catalogue. The painting captures Guiragossian as a young man, his posture conveying a duality of moods. One hand rests on his chair, the other holds a brush, his gaze intense and direct. The unbuttoned shirt suggests a relaxed yet focused artist, intensely observing himself while simultaneously being aware of the viewer's gaze. The backdrop, a dark, undefined ring of reds and browns, intensifies the portrait's emotional depth.

Marking its first exhibition outside Lebanon, the decision to share this deeply personal work was an emotional one for the family. Manuella, president of the Paul Guiragossian Foundation and an artist herself, described the profound responsibility felt when the painting, which had always remained within the family and the artist's estate, was prepared for international display. "After my father passed away, whenever we did retrospectives in Lebanon, this portrait would travel by hand with me or my siblings, and always come back by hand," she explained. "So you can imagine the emotions when the painting was packed and went outside Lebanon for the first time, the responsibility of letting go."

The 1948 self-portrait carries the weight of history, created in the same year Guiragossian and his family were displaced from Jerusalem due to the Nakba. This displacement forced him to leave behind many of his works, including a self-portrait he considered among his finest at the time. The later self-portrait serves as a poignant memento of that lost work and the profound experience of displacement, possibly echoing his parents' own experiences as survivors of the Armenian genocide.

The exhibition, segmented into distinct phases of Guiragossian's life, dedicates special attention to the women who shaped his artistic journey and personal life. "A lot of people know Guiragossian the artist. But we wanted to tell the story of his life through the women in his life. How his humanity translated into his work," stated Michaela Watrelot, head curator at the foundation. "No matter how iconic his works have become, they are rooted in the humanity of who Paul was as a person. We wanted to show works that people had rarely seen before, that may not be associated with Paul."

The exhibition's opening section, 'In Search of Belonging,' highlights Guiragossian's mother, Rahel, featuring ink and charcoal drawings and an oil painting from 1948 that shares a similar palette with his self-portrait. Rahel's gaze, less intense than her son's, seems directed elsewhere, a subtle yet powerful connection. "The first chapter highlights the resilience of his mother and the influence she had on him," Watrelot added.

Early works on display reveal an artist experimenting with various media and techniques. His initial oil paintings predominantly feature earth tones, a reflection, Manuella suggests, of a period marked by sadness and pain. This palette began to shift with marriage and fatherhood, injecting vibrant colors into his work. Paintings from the early to mid-1950s, while still using earth tones, start to incorporate brighter hues, with pieces like 'Maternité' (1953) and 'Le Cycle de Vie' (1955) showcasing mesmerising yellows that convey tenderness and anguish, respectively. Motherhood emerges as a significant theme, with portraits of his wife feeding their children alluding to Christian iconography, underscoring Guiragossian's view of mothers as sacred figures.

Guiragossian's time in Florence, where he studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti, is also explored. His solo exhibition in 1958 at Galleria d’Arte Moderna La Permanente featured early experiments with figurative abstraction. Works like 'La Famille' (1957) showcase his initial elongated figures, characterized by minimalist outlines due to financial constraints limiting his paint supply. Pieces such as 'Les Amies' (1958) and 'Femmes en Conversation' (1951) also reveal developing elements of his signature style, particularly abstracted figures defined by their posture rather than detailed features.

The section 'Painting Humanity' (1960-1979) features a striking 1978 portrait of his wife, Juliette. This period marks the emergence of classic Guiragossian style: vivid, elongated figures, often depicted in groups, conveying a wide emotional spectrum through color and posture. Works like 'Silence' (1968) and 'Rythme' (1978) exemplify this, with abstracted features allowing color and form to express emotion. 'La Lettre' (1978), depicting children gathered around a mother reading a letter, illustrates the family's shared experience, their unity conveyed through a dynamic mass of hues and brushstrokes.

Fatherhood's influence is further highlighted through an archival image of Guiragossian with his daughter Manuella, a period of intense closeness during the war. "During the war, my brothers and sisters travelled abroad," Manuella recalled. "For a time, I was alone with my parents. During this period, I became extremely close with my father. There was a lot of complicity between us, inside jokes and humour."

The exhibition's concluding section, 'Beyond Time and Form,' delves into Guiragossian's final, artistically intense years. His paintings grow in scale, figures looming with an almost Mesopotamian gravitas, drawing inspiration from everyday people. 'Portrait de Famille' and 'L’Echarpe' (both 1986) are prime examples. His final painting, 'L’Adieu,' completed in 1993, is presented as the culmination of his artistic endeavors. "He had finally managed to draw together the many strands he had grappled with as an artist his whole life," Manuella recounted him saying.

'L’Adieu' features a huddle of abstracted figures in rich reds, greens, and yellows, their feet perhaps their most defined feature, referencing his earlier works depicting porters. The exhibition concludes with a self-portrait from his final year, offering a less confrontational gaze, suggesting a man at peace with his life's journey, embracing the full spectrum of human experience—hardship, love, and fulfillment.

"There are so many stories, so many moments that are connected to the artworks," Manuella reflected. "Once you know them, once you go a little bit behind the scenes, you start seeing how all this evolved gradually. So much humanity. So much beauty in the hardships and the hope. It’s all connected. And that’s what makes the beauty of a retrospective like this."