Born in 1964, in Serbia and raised in Mount Lebanon, Sacha Abou Khalil is a self-taught painter, who currently lives between Italy and Lebanon.
Abou Khalil is known for two distinct types of painting: in the first, his commission-based hyperrealist portraits of individuals or families are devoid of any subjective intervention from the artist or narrative, existing almost in a surreal world. In contrast, in his expressionist portraits he draws on the world of famous fiction novels, using himself, family members and recognizable actors to take the roles of characters, inscribing a personal relevance to these texts. Once again, these portraits are devoid of narrative; rather, Abou Khalil seizes a single, fantastical moment from each story and interprets each as an existential reflection on youth, beauty, sexuality, death, and most potently, freedom.