Nour El Saleh

Nour El Saleh is a painter whose work explores the complexities of space, selective memory, and relativity. Her paintings act as gateways to alternative universes filled with humanoid figures interacting in emotionally charged environments. These imaginative spaces probe the boundaries of attraction and repulsion, formal structures, and obsessive tendencies, while redefining conventional notions of beauty and ugliness. Bypassing preliminary sketches, El Saleh's artistic approach relies on spontaneous arrangements of lines and forms to create new narrative possibilities. She aims to develop a satirical language that captures uncanny depictions of her personal experiences. Having spent her formative years in the United Arab Emirates—a region known for its transient population—El Saleh's sense of comfort and belonging has been in a constant state of flux. Her work addresses this instability by presenting spaces that are both unsettling and strangely familiar. Through the use of theatrical and comical imagery, the artist mediates the tension between these opposing emotional forces.