This September, Ayyam Gallery Dubai presents Inside Out '25, where Syrian artist Elias Izoli turns lived struggle into powerful art.
After a long hiatus, a pause shaped by the emotional and psychological toll of the Syrian conflict, Izoli reclaims his voice, and perhaps the voices of others silenced by war. His latest works speak of resilience, survival and truth.
At the centre of Inside Out '25 at Ayyam Gallery is the “circus of life,” a metaphor for the unpredictability and complexity of living through turmoil. For Izoli, the circus is more than a performance, it is a mirror of life in conflict, a fragile tent sheltering both endurance and despair. Tightrope walkers strain under invisible burdens. Clowns hide grief behind painted smiles. Magicians captivate the audience while concealing the true cost of their illusions.
We, the spectators, sit in safety. We never feel the rope’s tremor or the crushing weight each performer carries. Izoli draws back the curtain, revealing the struggles and triumphs that usually remain hidden from view.
The portraits in Elias Izoli Dubai exhibition are richly textured and emotionally layered. Figures in vivid costumes stand frozen in moments of quiet tension. Some hide in shadow; others clutch suitcases, poised to leave. Some hide partially behind curtains, while others cast watchful eyes over the big top, giving us a sense of the guarded world they inhabit. Here, the circus tent is both stage and prison, a place where survival is rehearsed every day.
One of the exhibition’s focal points is Izoli’s reimagining of Da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi as a clown. This figure, unpredictable as a joker card, could end the act in a single move. In it, manipulation and hope intertwine. Dazzling colours and playful illusion give way to the gravity beneath. What first appears as spectacle reveals fragility and sorrow upon closer look.
Izoli’s hybrid style blends traditional brushwork with collage-like cutouts, nodding to the legacy of Louay Kayyali. His palette muted yet luminous holds contradictions: joy within sorrow, beauty within restraint. It captures the human cost of war and the quiet impact of consumerism.
Inside Out '25 is more than an exhibition. It invites visitors to Ayyam Gallery Dubai to look beyond painted smiles and sequined costumes, to feel the rope’s strain, and to step inside the performance where the unseen layers of life quietly unfold.
Visit: ayyamgallery.com
Rania is an explorer of new places, a reader of stories from around the world, and loves experimenting with new food. She embraces different cultures and chases learning wherever she goes.
