The bird on people's head is a symbol he has used before but it appears more now. Birds are animals that quickly take flight and would never pose on a human. This entails that something within this person is stuck, they are no danger to the bird and will not shove it off. It indicates lack of humanity, ability to move, a stillness caused by the situation, the difficulty of movement in all directions. An indicator perhaps, of mental illness. In a sense the person is dehumanized. - Rashid Diab

Rashid Diab started his collaboration with Factum Arte with a visit to the studio in Madrid, exploring ways to work on his new series for the exhibition 'Reflections of War: Agony of Displacement' (November 25, 2023 – January 14, 2024) at One Off Contemporary Art Gallery in Nairobi, Kenya. After considering aquatint, sugar lift and other acid-based processes, production started using silicon carbide, also known as carborundum, to better suit Diab's drawing process. Using a mix of carborundum grit and PVA glue, thinned to a painterly texture, Diab created texture and surface on the plates before inking. 

The flat colours and backgrounds were created using the chine-collé technique, where thin layers of thin Japanese paper are laminated onto the main printing paper before going through the press. 

Over the course of two week long sessions in the studio with Factum Arte's Michael Ward, Diab experimented with several versions before arriving to the final set of proofs.

Trial proofs and plates of the small portrait series and photopolymer series © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

Trial proofs and plates of the small portrait series and photopolymer series © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

Trial proofs and plates of the small portrait series and photopolymer series © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

A selection from the series 'Portraits of War' © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

A selection from the series 'Portraits of War' © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

A selection from the series 'Portraits of War' © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

A selection from the series 'Portraits of War' © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

A selection from the series 'Portraits of War' © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Arte

Exhibition view, 'Reflections of War: Agony of Displacement', One Off Contemporary Art Gallery, Nairobi © courtesy the Artist

Exhibition view, 'Reflections of War: Agony of Displacement', One Off Contemporary Art Gallery, Nairobi © courtesy the Artist