Hiba Alyawer’s Abstract Artistry

Hiba Alyawer’s studio is an alluring amalgam of works in progress and canvases that feature a distinct, saturated color palette. In recent years, Alyawer’s unique approach to abstract painting has gained significant recognition. The artist has thrice been featured in British Vogue, and has since cultivated a cult following among collectors with an affinity for visually interactive art.

The hyper-pigmented electric blues and fiery pinks of Alyawer’s recent pieces are meant to evoke uplifting, cheerful emotions. Working in this saturated palette, Alyawer wants the community to perceive her work as “something happy to look at, something to energize them, something to get them excited,” she says.

Alyawer’s pieces are highly-texturized, casting shadows that create dynamic intrigue around her work. “Abstract art [is about] telling a story with shapes and textures,” she says. “My work is like my personality — vivid and bold.”

“With abstract art, the viewer should be engaged — coming up close to the painting, seeing the texture,” she says. “I urge my buyers to touch the work,” which ultimately bridges a personal connection between Alyawer’s pieces and the viewer. 

A data scientist by day and an artist by night, there is both friction and accord in the two worlds that Alyawer oscillates between. The differences are fairly palpable — abstract artistry is uninhibited to explore the variation of emotions, while there are certain restrictive limits to data-driven storytelling.

However, the crossover between Alyawer’s painting, and the coded data visualizations she creates at her day job, both represent her desire to reach the community. What both of these distinct spheres have in common, is that the two leverage an element of authentic creative expression. 

Naturally, this expression is deeply intuitive. Painting provided a sense of positive escapism when she and her family were hiding in a basement in Kuwait during the Gulf War. While simplistic in nature, the pieces she created during this difficult period have played an important role in the evolution of the textured abstracts that she creates today, she says. 

In tandem with her physical work, the growth of the Metaverse piqued Alyawer’s interest in creating in the NFT space. While the concept of NFTs is far from new, she contends the digital promotion of contemporary art through NFTs is an important part of the arts and entertainment industry.

“As an artist, we evolve and change anyways,” Alyawer says. “I feel it’s really important to move with the times.”

After learning about the software to create NFTs earlier this year, Alyawer is currently experimenting with a 3-D digital ornament that incorporates a special motion element. Tangential to this effort, another current project includes building HZL Art and Design, a company she founded last year, with intentions to segue into larger creative projects with the D.C. and federal governments. 

From colorful abstract pieces to new digital projects on the horizon, Alyawer is grounded in the positive reactions that she receives from her collectors. Connecting with the people that resonate with her many forms of expression.

“The happiest thing for me to hear is that my work makes people happy,” she says.

“[This response] makes me just want to create more vivid colors and bold palette,” she explains. “The highest form of appreciation is just telling me, ‘your art just made me happy.’”

To learn more about Art by Hiba, visit artbyhiba.com or follow on Instagram @artbyhibaa.