Muhammad’s work engages with enduring global questions about the human spirit, culture, and universal realities. The son of two refugees, Muhammad grew up in Jordan but moved to the U.S. in 2006. In his paintings and sculptures, he examines existential questions about the human condition.
Muhammad finds inspiration for his artwork through profound investigation into the temporality and transience of the lived experience vis-à-vis the permanence of universal consciousness. Through his intuitive paintings and sculptures, he reflects on the concepts of oppression and liberation, as well as on the inevitable archetypal quests and ritual motifs of the human spirit. He uses the bodily forms in a more representative way, depicting the sometimes ephemeral conditions of life. Whether they come in abstract style or in figurative form, Muhammad’s distinctive works are poignant and profound.
His artwork often incorporates metal elements, such as iron, copper, and bronze, not in their distilled form, but after prolonged exposure to natural decay and raw corrosion. This is often accomplished through the use of reactive metal paints that are then chemically oxidized to create a rusty finish with an aged patina. Oxidation is an uncontrollable and unpredictable process, making the result unique to every piece.
Other work features encaustic and natural beeswax, also unpredictable materials. With layers of oil paint, each work has experienced life and has been exposed to natural elements, and calls attention to organic decay. The result is something that, often cyclically but sometimes rebelliously, expresses material and immaterial encounters with life itself.
The paintings and sculptures include abstract and figurative compositions of earthly materials and life forms. For this, he makes use of oil paint, acrylic paint, beeswax, metallic paint, pastels, ink, and other artistic materials. He is inspired by organic materials and textures, wood, tree bark, rust, corrosion, soil, minerals, and, of course, the wandering human amidst it all.
Muhammad’s energetic art is often turbulent and engaging, with signature collections that include Copper Veracity, The Fallen, Eternal Divide, and Earthly Decay.
Website: www.muhammadmasud.com