About Me
I am fascinated by the emotional power of colours, shapes and lines and their enormous impact on our emotions. Non-representational abstract paintings that are not drawn from the real world are absolutely challenging, but I think they are amazing.
Not being drawn from the real world remains a huge debatable subject.
Part of the joy found in my artwork is the opinion that no piece is ever complete and can be changed at any time with the stroke of a paintbrush.
My name is Suhail Mitoubsi and I am a non-representational abstract artist. I work from my home studio in beautiful Teesside, north east England.
My journey with art goes back many years ago as a young child painting watercolour figurative art and landscapes.
Later, I became interested in photography and nearly made it into a professional career. I continued painting as well as I was trying to see if there was a link between painting and photography.
Photography was amazing in the sense I could capture and record a real second in life frozen in time. It was an artist’s representation of real objects from the real world.
Both types of art are considered “realism”, i.e. depicted from the real world around us. The real world, as always, is full of rules.
But the art I was looking for is the one that is free from rules and restrictions – the one that promotes freedom of expression, freedom of self-discovery without rules restricting your expression.
The more photography and figurative painting I did, the less satisfaction I was getting and gradually I came to realise that I needed more challenges – more freedom of expression.
That is all about non-representational abstract painting – no rules, no restrictions, no limitations, at least in my opinion.
I have been creating non-representational abstract paintings for many years now and never looked back.
I paint regularly – daily sometimes when I can, but mostly it’s every Friday night. I enjoy creating large abstract paintings.
I mainly use oil or acrylic paints. Creating each abstract painting is a fantastic journey that is hard to explain in the familiar sense, except a great joy. No other activity comes anywhere close. No two journeys are ever the same, but each journey brings immense joy and excitement – not knowing exactly where it’s heading or where it’s ending.
That journey of abstract painting is really what I hope to share with others no matter how they interpret my paintings.
To me, non-representational abstract painting means the “ultimate freedom of visual expression“.
We live a very busy life and everything around us seems to move so quickly that, sometimes, we miss the great little things in life to enjoy. Art, on the other hand, tells us to slow down and take our time. This is exactly what I experience every time when create my abstract painting.
The Beauty of Abstract Painting
(I know I keep referring to it as abstract painting, in reality, it is known as non-representational abstract painting).
Many years ago, I discovered that non-representational art does not represent the real world or life objects. Therefore, its form and shape can take on any aspect, ratio or form that the artist desires.
So, both the viewer and the creator of the artwork have no restrictions to attempt to link the artwork to anything that could be depicted from the real world. It provides complete freedom to engage your feelings to see whatever you want.
More details about The Beauty of Abstract Paintings.
The Art of Brush Painting – “Life Force” “Qi”
I became more aware of the beauty of Japanese brush painting, called sumi-e, when I first started to travel to Japan in the early 1980s. The art of brush painting. Using a beautiful natural hair brush and dark ink and a few amazing brush strokes create striking images. This unique style of painting came to Japan from China. Sumi-e is about line and form. It is simple, beautiful, elegant but extremely challenging. The white background (the paper) resembles the universe and the black ink lines resemble material forms that exist within it.
Japanese brush painting is different from Chinese brush painting but both styles do not try to create a realistic rendering of the external appearance of the subject, but instead seek to capture its inner spirit. It is this “life force” or qi (pronounced chi) that the artist aspires to capture and express through brush painting. Perhaps, some similarity with abstract painting!
Have a look at this post for more information Abstract Painting and Chinese Brush Painting.
Abstract Painting is a Fantastic Stress Relief
Art is a powerful expressive language of feeling and I’m interested in promoting its benefits as a fantastic stress relief to help mental health issues.
Millions of people suffer from mental health issues worldwide. Mental illnesses are more common, long-lasting and impactful than many other health conditions.
The free process of abstract painting is great art therapy and I am sure it can benefit many people. This article, by Megan Carty, is beautifully written and provides further explanation.
The focus of non-representational abstract painting is often more emotional and the entire premise of the art is based upon emotional expression rather than being representative of some physical form.
I see art as the language of emotion. Art attempts at all times to appeal to and connect with human emotion, not the logical mind. In its broadest form, art may be considered an exploration of the human condition or a product of human experience.
Art is one of the direct ways that can allow us to access and touch the innermost deepest parts of ourselves that directly influence the creation of our emotions and feelings.
This journey of discovering your inner emotions and feelings is half the battle. This is the journey of self-understanding.
The other important half is how you actually deal with it. The journey to ultimate freedom…
Art in general, but particularly abstract art can allow people to simply “let go”.
It’s all about self-expression and sharing the way we experience life.
Here are a couple of posts about the subject with more details – Is Abstract Painting Really Good for Mental Health and How Can Art Therapy Help Mental Health?
Abstract Painting – The Language of Feelings
You do not have to be an artist and you do not need an art degree to create your own abstract painting. Simply, all you need is to listen to your feelings and paint your feelings with your feelings.
It is the ultimate freedom of expression – no rules, no restrictions, no limitations – just follow what your heart says and enjoy it.
