Oil

The defining medium of mid-century Arab painting. From Mahmoud Said's lush figurative scenes of the Egyptian Delta to the saturated palettes of the Iraqi modernists, oil has carried more of the region's artistic ambition than any other material. Its slow drying time and luminous depth made it the medium of choice for the major monumental works of Arab modernism — Jawad Saleem's portraiture, Marwan Qasab Basha's heavy-impasto figures, the lyrical landscapes of Yahia Turki, and the coloristic explorations that followed Mahmoud Mokhtar. Oil remains the canvas of choice for collectors seeking works of museum-grade significance, both for its expressive range and for its proven conservation longevity.