Mae Lombardi is excited to present Heavyweight, an exhibition by the Chicago-based artist Nour Malas, at 342 Park Avenue in Glencoe, Illinois. This exhibition marks the artist’s first solo show in the Chicago area. The four paintings on view range in scale and surface, showcasing the artist’s signature, gestural brushwork across mediums. 

Within a boldly-hued field of frenetic marks, faces slowly emerge into view. Their raw, immediate execution appears as if a face conjured from memory, blurring realms remembered, dreamt, and felt. As if poems in paint, her compositions reveal the weight of color and palette of memory. This focused presentation is a testament to the profound emotional resonance imbued in Malas’ meticulously layered surfaces. 

Led by a ceaseless exploration of spaces emotive and psychological, Malas intricately weaves movement and introspection into her compositions. A trademark of Malas’ distinctive pictorial language, her spontaneous and intuitive marks are a direct response to her environment. Expressions of curiosity, rage, and desperation, her brushstrokes invite viewers to immerse themselves in poignant landscapes: internal, uncharted, and remarkably beautiful. 

Nour Malas (b. 1995) was born in Cannes, FR. After graduating from Goldsmiths University, London in 2017, she received an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), in 2022. Recent solo and two-person exhibitions of her work include Running, DIANA Gallery, New York (2023); four am, Carbon 12 Gallery, Dubai (2023); and Desperately Discontinuous Bodies, Gonzo Unit, Thessaloniki (2018). The artist lives and works in Chicago.