Rachid Koraïchi

Private Collection, Tunisia (acquired directly from the artist in 2009) 

This work is in very good condition. The colours in the catalogue illustration are accurate, with the overall tonality being much luminescent and vibrant in the original work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Born in Algeria in 1947, the descendant of an old Sufi family, Rachid Koraïchi works with effortless facility in several contrasting mediums, producing pieces that belong firmly within the Sufi tradition yet nonetheless encompass intriguing aspects of modernity and universality. Through the use of Arabic calligraphy and symbols from both ancient and current cultures, Koraïchi movingly investigates the lives of the fourteen mystics of Islam; great Muslim thinkers and poets such as Rumi and El Arabi whose visions remain enduring to this day.

Koraïchi's work is influenced by an abiding fascination with signs of all kinds, both real and imaginary, beginning with the intricate beauty of Arabic calligraphic scripts. His work is composed of symbols, glyphs and ciphers drawn from a wide variety of other languages and cultures. Whether the source is numerological perceptions of ancient cultures or his inventive Chinese ideograms that appear to share similar forms, Koraïchi’s eclectic work integrates these crossing systems of signs into an organised and fascinating description of the diverse world that surrounds us.

He has sought to reunite Islamic rituals and mysticism with the aim of reviving the arts and crafts culture of the region by fusing ancient techniques and modern practices with dramatic effect. Koraïchi places the utmost value upon craftsmanship, working with the keepers and messengers of the semantic ‘know how.’ His work is an ode to his ancestors’ spirituality, craftsmanship and voyage through history, an elegiac homage to a venerable cultural past.

"Leave the familiar for a while.

Let your senses and bodies stretch out

 

Like a welcomed season

Onto the meadow and shores and hills.

 

Open up to the Roof.

Make a new watermark on your excitement

And love.

 

Like a blooming night flower,

Bestow your vital fragrance of happiness

And giving

Upon our intimate assembly.

 

Change rooms in your mind for a day.

 

All the hemispheres in existence

Lie beside an equator

In your heart.

 

Greet Yourself

In your thousand other forms

As you mount the hidden tide and travel

Back home.

 

All the hemispheres in heaven

Are sitting around a fire

Chatting

While stitching themselves together

Into the Great Circle inside of

You."

Hafiz, All The Hemisphere, 14th Century