“The ice cream seller”, Louay Kayyali (1934-1978)
Louay Kayyali (1934-1978) was a Syrian painter whose emotionally charged works captured the struggles of ordinary people, making him a pivotal figure in 20th-century Arab modern art.
Kayyali is born in Aleppo, Syria. He grew up in a culturally rich environment. He studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Rome during the 1950s.
He gained recognition for his his scenes of daily life and the world of work. In these works, he evokes the social conditions of his contemporaries. He painted portraits of street vendors, fishermen, washerwomen, and women, both famous and unknown.
He is recognized as a prominent artist on the Syrian and international scene.
Al-Kayyali died in 1978, suffering from severe burns after his cigarette set fire to his bed.
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