Rida Abdallah was born in Beirut, Lebanon, and currently lives and works in Paris, France. He is a visual artist whose work centers on drawing as a primary medium to explore the concept of disappearance—not as a sudden absence, but as a slow, rhythmic process of erosion.

His latest practice, the series Disparitions (Disappearances), is an exploration of human figures caught within environments of social tension and precarity. In these ink drawings, Abdallah’s figures do not vanish abruptly; instead, they gradually lose their individuality and definition, dissolving into dense spatial and collective contexts. Light plays a vital, structuring role in his work, acting as a stabilizing force that suspends fragile forms in an unstable balance. Abdallah suggests that presence can persist even as forms weaken, utilizing shadows that soften and disperse to reinforce a sense of fragility. Rather than illustrating specific narrative events, his work evokes transitional states where the figure remains visible but partially absorbed by its surroundings, turning instability into a necessary condition of visibility.

Rida Abdallah is a graduate of the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris (ENSBA) and the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. He has been the recipient of several prestigious honors, including the Blue Prize (2021), the ArtQatar Award (2016), and the Paul-Louis Weiller Portrait Prize from the Académie des Beaux-Arts. His work has been featured in publications such as Duel Magazine, L’Orient-Le Jour, and L’Humanité. Recent exhibitions include the solo show ‘Poussières’ at Villa Empain (Brussels), as well as group exhibitions at the Carrousel du Louvre and the Institut de France in Paris.

Education & Training

École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (ENSBA), Paris

Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Paris

Exhibition & Projects (Selection)

2024

Poussières, Solo Exhibition, Villa Empain (Open Space), Brüssel, Belgium

David Weil Drawing Prize, Group Exhibition, Institut de France, Paris, France

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Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Group Exhibition, Carrousel du Louvre, Paris, France

Galerie Talmart, Group Exhibition, Paris, France