Pursuit of Happiness Exhibition - Happiness comes from the simplest things

Zeina Hammoudeh is an oil painter from Amman, the capital of Jordan. Her passion for art developed from a young age. After graduating, she went to London to pursue interior design until 2010. After that, Zeina returned to her homeland to continue her career in interior design, event design and event organization. However, her deep love for art led her to become a full-time artist. Zeina's paintings are mainly inspired by the countries she has visited and their unique cultures.

Zeina chose traditional oil painting to capture memorable moments. Fauvism in painting from masters like Matisse provided her with abundant inspiration to develop her expertise and create. The exhibition Pursuit of Happiness is Zeina's artistic way of storytelling, bringing everyday life to paintings full of positive energy, radiant with happiness.

HAPPINESS IS THE MAIN SPIRIT

Taking still life and people as the main inspiration, Zeina brings a cool breeze about love of life, making the audience spend more time thinking about the small things in their lives. The highlight of Pursuit of Happiness is the bright colors in harmony with simple lines, creating a feeling of happiness and positivity through the paintings of artist Jordan.

The audience has the opportunity to visit the female artist's worldview through her paintings with a fresh, optimistic and vibrant spirit. Not only can they feel the brightness in the paintings, but they can also easily recognize the very Vietnamese elements that Zeina cleverly incorporates: the broom, the honeycomb sandals, the coffee filter, etc. The small details are enough for us to feel the Jordanian female artist's love for Vietnam.

In "Lucky Charms", Zeina skillfully combines the symbolic details of luck. The prominent image is the rooster taken as the center of this painting. In the thinking of the ancients, the rooster with its crowing sound that echoes to the top of the mountain, frightening the devils, is a symbol of the guardian angel, destroying and subduing evil. To this day, in the thinking of the Vietnamese, the rooster is still a sacred animal, appearing in daily life as well as cultural events.

The image of a cat in the year of the Cat 2023 appears with extremely lovely strokes and colors through the work Happy Go Lucky. Simple strokes, bright colors and small, pretty details make many viewers immerse themselves in a space of joy and happiness. On the opening day of the exhibition, female artist Zeina Hommoudeh welcomed, talked and shared joy and positivity in life with many viewers present.

FEMINIST THOUGHT THROUGH WORKS

In addition, the audience who came to see the exhibition was also impressed by the painting of the Mongolian girl "GAN". There are still women who have to fight hard to live a free and happy life - things that seem simple in the 21st century.

16-year-old Gan grew up in a conservative, strict family. Not having the same thoughts, perceptions and outlook on life with her family members, she was forced to fight for her own freedom and independence. Gan took off the scarf that usually covered her face, so that the world could see her "very human" emotions more nakedly. Behind the veil, many women still hide many worries and sorrows about their difficult, confined lives. Gan overcame obstacles in a prejudiced society, to become stronger and more resilient than ever.

Or in the work about the French woman named Ms. Beaufort, the female artist wishes that women all over the world can live as themselves. Beaufort is elegant and noble without any fear in bold clothes, confidently expressing her personality.

The Jordanian artist shares her love for painting women, seeing it as a way to convey a message of confidence and positivity to the women around her. "We women have to stand together, motivate and support each other. We deserve to be who we want to be, to dress the way we like and express our opinions," Zeina told Travellive.

Some pictures at the Pursuit of Happiness exhibition:

Bileo