Atef Maatallah

• Biography

  Born in 1981, Al Fahs, Tunisia
  
  Lives and works in Tunis, Tunisia
  
  Atef Maatallah’s work revisits the codes of narrative figuration through a rigorous illustration of everyday images and characters whose haunting glances evoke an air of transience. Through this sensitive rendering, Maatallah's paintings and drawings evoke the precarious existence lived by people he encounters in his daily life. The figures are accompanied by objects, which through their ephemeral appearance, hint at the tenuousness of their social conditions.
  
  Maatallah graduated from the Institut Supérieur des Beaux-Arts of Tunis, his works have been exhibited in numerous cultural venues including L’Institut des Cultures de l’Islam de la Ville de Paris in 2016, Me.Na Pavilion at Singapore Art Fair 2014 curated by Catherine David from the Centre Pompidou.
  
  He was awarded twice the Prize of Paris Contemporary Drawing in 2015 and 2016. His works are part of various private and public collections including Barjeel Art Foundation, Kamel Lazaar Foundation and the Ministry of Culture in Tunisia.

  Exhibitions

  EXHIBITIONS (Selection)
  
  2017          1:54 Contemporary Art Fair, London, UK
  2017          Art Paris Art Fair, Paris
  2017        “S’hab / S’mè”, a solo exhibition in collaboration with guest artists Alaeddine Sli Elmarsa, Tunis
  2014         “Politiques”, collective exhibition at Galerie Talmart, Paris
  2013         “Politiques 2”, group show with artist collective Politics including guest artists Shadi Al Zaqzouq, Matthieu Boucherit and Iba Wane, Centre national des arts vivants of Tunis
  2013         Group show with artist collective Politics including guest artists Shadi Al Zaqzouq, Matthieu Boucherit and Iba Wane, Galerie Talmart, Paris
  2013         “No man’s land”, solo show at Elmarsa, Tunis
  2012         10th Printemps des arts Fair de Tunis, Palais Abdellyah, represented by Elmarsa
  2012         Group show with artist collective Politics, Centre national des arts vivants of Tunis
  2012         “A dire d'elles”, the National Library of Tunis
  2012         “Sexy Art 3”, Galerie Aire Libre El Teatro, Tunis
  2012         Salon Maisons et Objets (Design Fair), represented by designer Philippe Xerri Rock The Kasbah, Paris
  2012         “Lokhrine”, a group show at Galerie Aire Libre El Teatro, Tunis
  2006-09    Founder and active member of the collective El Maamel: conception and production of wall paintings and sculptures commissioned for private and public spaces
  
  COLLECTIONS
  
  Ministry of Culture in Tunisia
  Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah
  Kamel Lazaar Collection, Tunis
  And in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, London, Paris, Tunis, etc.

  News

  -Gulf News Arts - Shining a spotlight on North African art by Jyoti Kalsi, special to Weekend Review, August 4, 2016:

       http://gulfnews.com/culture/arts/shining-a-spotlight-on-north-african-art-1.1873799

       http://www.institut-cultures-islam.org/agenda/effervescence/

  - Connaissance des arts - Tunisie aujourd’hui à l’Institut des cultures d’Islam de Paris by Myriam Boutoulle 14.07.2016:

      https://www.connaissancedesarts.com/art-contemporain/tunisie-aujourdhui-a-linstitut-des-cultures-dislam-de-paris-1147414/ 

  - RFI-Radio France Internationale - «Effervescence» tunisienne à l’Institut des cultures d’islam by RFI 04-07-2016:

      http://www.rfi.fr/france/20160704-effervescence-tunisienne-institut-cultures-islam 

  - Atef Maatallah lauréat du prix L’ART EST VIVANT – Award Prize L’ART EST VIVANT (April 2016):

       http://www.ddessinparis.fr/2016/laureats-lart-est-vivant/#av_section_1 

  - Marion Zilio - Dispositifs sensibles, in collaboration with the Collectif Zamaken at the Salon DDessin16, Atelier Richelieu, Paris:

       http://marionzilio.com/dispositif-sensible/ 

  - Hi-Fructose - The New Contemporary Art Magazine: Atef Maatallah’s Personality-Driven Portraits of Tunisian Society by Roxanne Goldberg, August 28, 2015:

       http://hifructose.com/2015/08/28/atef-maatallahs-personality-driven-portraits-of-tunisian-society/ 

  - Pixelgray - Atef Maatallah by sarwiya, August 30, 2015:

      http://pixelgray.com/2015/08/30/atef-maatallah/ 

  - Nataal - Tunisian art flourishes with JAOU and a young generation of artists as its critical voice by Helen Jennings:

      http://www.nataal.com/tunisian-art

  - chaos without consequences:

      http://myheartisanelephant.tumblr.com/post/111478609798

  - Whitewall - JAOU Tunis: Talks, Tours, and Insights by Hili Perlson on June 3, 2014:

      http://www.whitewallmag.com/tag/atef-maatallah 

  - TAG - Atef Maâtallah. Par-delà les figures et les maux. by Meysem Marrouki, 11-02-2013 from La Presse, Tunisie :

      http://www.tunisiartgalleries.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2373:atef-maatallah-plasticien-par-dela-les-figures-et-les-maux&catid=2:tagpress-tunisie&Itemid=70