Eastern and European Traditions in the Works of Contemporary Syrian Artists

The subject area of this study implies Eastern and European traditions in the works of Contemporary Syrian artists from the 1950s to the present days. We are going to explore the main features and ideas of contemporary Syrian art in the context of postcolonial theory, to find out the answer to the question of what Syrian artists tried to realise in their works and to describe how do these works reflect the events occurring in the reality since the civil war and national liberation movements. We are going to consider the question of European inflence on Syrian contemporary art in a connection with its authenticity and the intention of Syrian artists to find their own way, to demonstrate their individuality and uniqueness. Our aim is to explore ideas they tried to realise in their works in the context of postcolonialism. As for the structure of our research, it is divided into several parts (chapters). In the first two chapters we aim to reveal consistently the following topics: contemporary Syrian art in historical perspective and Middle Eastern art market. The basis of the third chapter is a series of interviews with contemporary Syrian artists living in Moscow, Dubai, Shardja and Francfurt am Main.