Seemingly familiar objects float between beautifully deviant configurations. Her hallucinatory landscapes invoke hauntingly seductive manipulations of acrylic and oils, manufacturing forms that twist restrictions on the possibilities of movement and liquify the distinction between memories and fantastical constructions. Land of Sequels is Baraka’s second solo at Gypsum Gallery and builds on her first show Cosmic Truths and Tales to be Told. SOUTH SOUTH interviewed the artist to unpack the inspiration for her recent body of work.

Nada Baraka’s work deals with the perception of the female body and its subjection to changes within today’s society, tackling themes of gender, identity and the body’s relationship with its surroundings.

However, two qualities of her art stand in the way of geographically defining it. Not only did her time living in London shift her language and set her on the path she is on now, but her interpretation of the body in her art resonates with how many high-profile female artists – from Christina Quarles to Wangetchi Mutu, to Louise Bonnet – are representing the female form. Yet it would also be an oversimplification of Baraka’s art to zone in on qualities that it might share with other female artists. 

When we step into someone’s home for the first time, we’re often overcome with a sense of inhibition, despite our curiosity to take the space in – politely refraining from digging too deep into the pictures and mementos that represent the homeowners’ memories, identities and aspirations. However, this particular home in Garden City invites strangers to fully delve into its history when Egyptian contemporary artist Nada Baraka transformed it into a public exhibition, ‘The Valley of Walls’.

The winner of the 2023 ANNA Award is Egyptian artist Nada Baraka. “This award validated a lot of my own struggles and hard work, and quelled my doubts. My mind can’t grasp that I have actually won,” says Baraka.

Baraka creates paintings that maintain an endless, active state of flux, swaying between abstract and surreal with her evocative application and vivid colours.

After a vigorous selection process, in which an esteemed selection committee cast their votes for the 12 ANNA Award 2023 finalists, the winner is out.

Nada Baraka, an Egyptian artist based in Cairo, is the 2023 ANNA Award recipient.
Nada Baraka makes paintings that maintain an endless, active state of flux, swaying between abstract and surreal with her evocative application and vivid colors.

As an undercurrent, I am concerned with how we experience extreme emotions, and how the discharge of endorphins has a way of plunging us into reality because of how they disturb it. The paintings seek to portray these explosive instances that occur in these spaces, to capture this extremity of emotions.