Before I met Lubna, I was drawn to her beautiful and expressive imagery at the recent Dubai Photo Exhibition. I will be discussing a number of her works that make this young lady stand out as a real ‘one to watch’ in her progress as a Photographic Artist. To simply call her a ‘photographer’ would be an understatement. The immediate impression is that she has learned to express herself in this medium, not with the most sophisticated and expensive camera equipment, but with her mind and vision.

The Artist Photographer Lubna Abdel Aziz

The artwork entitled “She” is to me, reminiscent of a blend of painterly approaches from the surreal of René Magritte to the delightful works of 19th century French portrait painter Gustave Jean Jaquet. The absolute simplicity of its pose, choice of costume and a mood emphasised by a subdued, almost desaturated pallete with a splash of colour with nothing more than a blank wall as the background to the canvas adds drama and narrative to the content.

“She” by Lubna Abdel Aziz

I wanted to know more about this young artist and was pleasantly surprised when she introduced herself to me when I was making observations on her collection to my learned colleagues. It is all so easy for photographic critics to find negative factors within an image but far more difficult to hold one’s tongue, subdue ‘learned’ negativity due to observance of so called rules that are mostly unsubstantiated in fact and poorly applied, and simply accept a piece of honest, beautiful art for what it is. My only useful input is to aid referencing outside of photography into the glorious world of art.

Martin Grahame-Dunn