Zeina Kara Ali

The foyer

61 × 101 cm

Acrylic on canvas

Unsold

Suggested offer$850

About the work

Rooted in a deep nostalgia for my home country, my work celebrates the charm of traditional architecture while blending contemporary vibrancy within classical themes. I am drawn to the beauty, light, and subtle details that make these heritage spaces feel both timeless and alive — expressions of authenticity, culture, and legacy.

The Foyer depicts a room from a beautifully renovated Ottoman-era house in the mountains, now a welcoming guest home. Translating its photographed memory into paint, I romanticize the elegance of its arches, interiors, and sun-lit details — imagining the life and stories that continue to unfold within its walls. The foyer has been nominated as finalist in Burwood Art Prize 2025 and AMA 2025 Art Award

About the artist

Zeina observes and accrues the pervasive details of her subjects that speak to her personally, integrating them with her own story to produce her own condensed interpretation of the beauty in what she sees. Zeina Kara-Ali – Biography Currently living in Sydney, Australia, artist Zeina Kara-Ali was born and raised in Lebanon. Kara-Ali’s work is intrinsically linked to her childhood, with memories of the architecture and culture of Lebanon informing her current body of work. The artist completed a BA of Biology before traveling and settling in Ghana, Africa for several years. Both the observant intricacy inherent to her formal education and the vivacity of her diverse experiences abroad are at the core of her art. Often veering towards the expressive, Kara-Ali has a penchant for still-life and landscape work. Her style is primarily graphical, with the artist deconstructing elements of her subjects by playing with light and pigment. Trained at the Sydney Art School predominantly in landscape and the technicality in painting, Kara-Ali is committed to the ongoing development of her craft and seeks to connect with her audience through her natural desire to notice and elicit beauty where it may not typically reside. The artist ran an Art studio in Ghana and worked openly as both student and teacher where she invited esteemed artists local to the region and students to come together and work reciprocally to improve their art. Kara-Ali states, “I always notice the little details and have been able to see the beauty in my surroundings. I have lived in several countries throughout my life, which has resulted in my deep appreciation for different cultures, that I aim to portray in my paintings.” Regarding her current direction, the artist continues, “Recently, my paintings have reflected my feelings of nostalgia towards my home country, Lebanon. And after my last visit there, I began to paint the beauty of Lebanese traditional houses including my childhood home. The Lebanese traditional houses are a world of sunshine and light, of colour both subtle and vivid, of authenticity and legacy. I carry them in my memory, and I attempt to bring them into reality through my paintings.” Among her achievements, the artist was a finalist in the Hunter Hill Art Exhibition 2022 and 2023 as well as the Fisher's Ghost Art Award 2023. She is also adept at decoupage as well as studio painting with acrylic on canvas. Kara-Ali organized charitable art workshops for women and orphans in Ghana and worked for non-profit organisations Zeina Kara-Ali – Biography Currently living in Sydney, Australia, artist Zeina Kara-Ali was born and raised in Lebanon. Kara-Ali’s work is intrinsically linked to her childhood, with memories of the architecture and culture of Lebanon informing her current body of work. The artist completed a BA of Biology before traveling and settling in Ghana, Africa for several years. Both the observant intricacy inherent to her formal education and the vivacity of her diverse experiences abroad are at the core of her art. Often veering towards the expressive, Kara-Ali has a penchant for still-life and landscape work. Her style is primarily graphical, with the artist deconstructing elements of her subjects by playing with light and pigment. Trained at the Sydney Art School predominantly in landscape and the technicality in painting, Kara-Ali is committed to the ongoing development of her craft and seeks to connect with her audience through her natural desire to notice and elicit beauty where it may not typically reside. The artist ran an Art studio in Ghana and worked openly as both student and teacher where she invited esteemed artists local to the region and students to come together and work reciprocally to improve their art. Kara-Ali states, “I always notice the little details and have been able to see the beauty in my surroundings. I have lived in several countries throughout my life, which has resulted in my deep appreciation for different cultures, that I aim to portray in my paintings.” Regarding her current direction, the artist continues, “Recently, my paintings have reflected my feelings of nostalgia towards my home country, Lebanon. And after my last visit there, I began to paint the beauty of Lebanese traditional houses including my childhood home. The Lebanese traditional houses are a world of sunshine and light, of colour both subtle and vivid, of authenticity and legacy. I carry them in my memory, and I attempt to bring them into reality through my paintings.” Among her achievements, the artist was a finalist in the Hunter Hill Art Exhibition 2022 and 2023 as well as the Fisher's Ghost Art Award 2023. She is also adept at decoupage as well as studio painting with acrylic on canvas. Kara-Ali organized charitable art workshops for women and orphans in Ghana and worked for non-profit organisations teaching art there. Currently Kara-Ali is working on her first solo show "Arches" at Hurstville Museum and Gallery in June 2024, which will be a collection of her body of work about the traditional houses of her home country, Lebanon. teaching art there. In June 2024, the artist held her first solo exhibition “Arches Memory” which was a collection of her body of work about the traditional houses of her home country, Lebanon.

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