31/05/2025
A Hidden Past by Jean Pierre Bejjani
Oil on canvas — 145 × 95 cm
Bejjani brings together multiple techniques into a single, controlled composition, where a calm turquoise field sets the stage for something more complex beneath. As the eye adjusts, elongated faces begin to emerge, pressed tightly together, their identities stretched and reshaped by proximity and tension.
A turbulent layer of off-white paint cuts across the surface, partially erasing what lies beneath. This gesture feels both instinctive and deliberate, as if the artist attempts to conceal, overwrite, or distance himself from what once was, leaving only fragments for the viewer to reconstruct.
The work reflects on the weight of the past and its quiet persistence within us. What we try to hide does not disappear, it transforms, shaping who we become. In this tension between memory and erasure, Bejjani creates a painting that is both visually striking and deeply introspective.