• The first time any works from the renowned Dalloul Collection have come to market 
•  48 masterpieces of Modern and Contemporary Art from the Arab World dating from 1938 to 2014
• The auction is led by Mahmoud Saïd’s Egyptian modernist masterpiece Fille à l’imprimé (Girl in a printed dress), estimate £350,000 – 550,000
• Highlights feature works by pioneering Modern masters including Kadhim Haydar, Dia Al-Azzawi, Mohamed Melehi and Marwan, exciting contemporary works by Ibrahim El Salahi, Ahmed Mater and Ayman Baalbaki, and strong female representation by Etel Adnan, Helen Khal, Yvette Achkar and Samia Halaby

LONDON – Christie's is honoured to announce "Marhala: Highlights from the Dalloul Collection", a single owner evening sale comprising 48 masterpieces from the Dalloul Art Collection. The auction will take place at Christie’s headquarters in London on 9 November and represents an immersive journey through modern and contemporary Arab art history from the 1930s up until the 2010s. Formed by the late visionary art collector Dr. Ramzi Dalloul and his wife, Saeda El Husseini, and advanced by their son, Dr. Basel Dalloul, the Dalloul Art Collection, located in Beirut, Lebanon, is unparalleled in its breadth and depth and reflects an extraordinary level of connoisseurship. Their decades of travel across the Arab region combined with their deep relationships with artists, have shaped a collection that boldly celebrates Arab artistic diversity and culture. 

The sale is led by Mahmoud Saïd's Fille à l'imprimé (Girl in a printed dress), (illustrated above on page 1),an iconic masterpiece previously held in the collection of Hussein Pasha Sirry and exhibited four times during Saïd's lifetime, notably at the 1939 Salon du Cairo. Painted at the height of the artist’s career, this work explores one of Saïd’s favoured subjects, an Egyptian peasant woman or fellaha. With his ingenious play on light and his unparalleled mastery of colour, Saïd depicts the young women with a contemplative yet seductive gaze, glowing in her flowery dress against the dark background. 

Other significant works include a striking abstract by Kadhim Haydar, Dia Al Azzawi's Summeria Facewhich was one of the highlights of the recent travelling exhibition Beirut and the Golden Sixties, a distinctive Mohamed Melehi wave painting from the 1980s, and a mystifying Marionette by Marwan painted in 2014.
The collection has a strong Lebanese contingent including outstanding works by Etel Adnan, Helen Khal, Paul Guiragossian, Shafic Abboud and ChaoukiChoukini. The contemporary section highlights leading figures of the region such as Ibrahim El Salahi, Ahmed Mater, Ayman Baalbaki and Samia Halaby, with a monumental composition painted in 2014 and a captivating geometric abstract from 1978.

Highlights include:

A strong group of works by Moroccan artists includes Mohamed Melehi’s (1936, Asilah, Morocco - 2020, Boulogne-Billancourt, France) Untitled, 1982, (estimate £70,000-100,000) (illustrated above left). Melehi was a pivotal figure in the Casablanca Art School in Morocco in the 1960-1970s. Combining Moroccan arts, crafts and architecture with the avant-garde art movements of the 1960s including Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art, this work is an unique fusion of Melehi’s distinctive wave pattern, radiant colour palette and Arabic calligraphy. Ibrahim El-Salahi (b. 1930, Omdurman, Sudan) has been recognised as a key figure in the development of African Modernism today, pioneering the integration of African, Islamic, Arab and Western artistic traditions in his practice. Palm Tree, 2001 (estimate £30,000- 50,000), (illustrated centre above), is an exceptional work from The Tree series, a body of geometrically 
complex and spiritually captivating works inspired by the artist’s fascination for the Haraz tree native to Sudan. Lebanese-American painter, art critic and educator Helen Khal (1923, Allentown, US - 2009, Ajaltoun, Lebanon) was born in Pennsylvania, however embarked on her formal art education in Beirut in 1946 and would go on to make significant contributions to the Lebanese art scene. (Illustrated above farright), Untitled, 1970, (estimate £25,000-35,000) is an evocative colour field abstract work in which the artist has imbued life onto the surface through carefully building forms from numerous layers of thinned oil paint and sweeping modulations of colour. 

The Dalloul family has a special relationship with Lebanese artist Ayman Baalbaki (B. 1975, Odaisseh, Lebanon) and his large scale masterpiece Untitled, 2009 (estimate £60,000-80,000) (illustrated left on page 2), highlights the contemporary section. Channelling the collective traumas of life in a war-torn country, Baalbaki infuses vitality in the remnants of battered architecture in his homeland and transforms the demolished building into a powerful metaphor representing the nation and its people. Kopf links gedreht (Head turned left) 1972, (estimate £18,000-25,000), (illustrated above centre) is an early example of the iconic Head series by Marwan (1934, Damascus – 2016, Berlin). In the present work Marwan employs expressive brushstrokes in watercolour to explore the psychological depth of the human visage.

(Pictured left), Dr Basel Dalloul, next to Green and Earth painted in 2014 by Samia Halaby (b.1936), a female trailblazer of abstraction, (estimate £40,000-60,000). Dr Basel Dalloul comments, ‘I have taken the decision to sell a select number of works from the Dalloul Collection at Christie’s in order to refine the collection, whilst simultaneously continuing to enrich it with iconic modern masterpieces and emerging Arab art. The Dalloul Collection will continue to ensure that Arab artists from different backgrounds, cultures and disciplines are represented and specifically showcases a diverse range of talent and perspectives from across the Arab world. Many of these works were purchased from Christie’s, so it is fitting to collaborate with Christie’s and offer a selection in London this Autumn for the next chapter of their treasured life to unfold.’ 

The auction also includes a monumental Marionette canvas by the artist from 2014.The auction also features two works by Saudi Arabian artist Ahmed Mater (Tabuk, b.1979), one of the most esteemed cultural voices documenting and scrutinising the realities of contemporary Saudi Arabia today. In Human Highway (Mina) (estimate £20,000-30,000) (illustrated above right), the artist captures an aerial perspective of the revered ‘Stoning of Jamarat’ rite during Hajj and reflects on the spiritual forces that upheld human faith. 

 Dr Ridha Moumni, Deputy Chairman, Christie’s Middle East and North African comments, ‘It’s truly a privilege to present these masterpieces during a period when Modern and Contemporary Arab art is flourishing and drawing increasing attention from an international client base. Beyond the Gulf states traditionally leading this market, a broader audience of clients, collectors, and dealers continues to emerge. The Dalloul Collection stands out as one of the most important collections of Arab art in the Middle East. I look forward to seeing these museum-quality pieces from this unique collection achieving exceptional 
results.’

Marie-Claire Thijsen, Head of Sale, Middle Eastern Modern and Contemporary Art comments, ‘When I first had the pleasure of seeing the Dalloul Collection I was struck by its magnitude, taking the viewer on a voyage through the modern and contemporary art history of the Arab world. This evening auction reflects the connoisseurship of the Dalloul family and celebrates their passion for Arab art and culture.