Nabil Letayf began sculpting when he returned to
Lebanon ten years ago. “Since then I haven’t
stopped.” Letayf is a dermatologist by profession
and sculpts as a hobby. An untrained artist whose preferred
medium is wood, the good doctor is an eccentric.
Darting around his workshop and makeshift studio, uttering
profound statements, Letayf acts like a crazed genius. “The
shape is the essence of a sculpture, but shape alone is not
enough. The meaning you give to a shape makes it alive,” he
says.
Letayf becomes passionate when talking about his sculptures
and completely absorbed when creating them. His intellect,
fervent imagination and skill with his hands merge to create
exceptional works of art.
Letayf sculpts outdoors because natural light falls on the grains
of wood in such a way that it compels forms. “I can see where
I have to work,” he says. He tackles wood “centimeter by centimeter”
or else it expands and cracks.
Letayf works with all
types of wood, but mostly pine and olive. He enjoys going into
the forest on weekends to gather fallen wood, which must first
be dried in the sun. “Sometimes the wood obliges you to wait several weeks,”
says Letayf. “That
is why I work on
several pieces at the
same time.”
What inspires
Letayf? Previous
inquiries encouraged
him to write
an explanatory
essay. Three and a
half years later he
completed a book,
Vibrations in Wood.
One piece, “Desire
Consecrated”, commemorates his first
kiss. Letayf recounts the story. “When I was 12 years old, I had
a beautiful neighbor – she was 18. I wanted to kiss her, but she
wouldn’t allow me. Then one day she let me kiss her.”
Forty
years later, Letayf recalled the object of his pubescent desire in
a dream, and immediately set about immortalizing the kiss she
granted him. “All that is within me I express in wood,” he says.
Not all the sculptures were inspired by personal experiences.
“The Horse of Don Quixote” pays tribute to the famous
novel by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. The base of the
sculpture is skillfully constructed to make it look as though the
horse is levitating. “It is not fixed because the horse is imaginary,”
he says.
Letayf has displayed his sculptures at a number of collective
shows in Beirut. But it was not until June 1999 that he held his
first one-man show. Of the 63 pieces exhibited, 14 were sold.
Since starting, he has only sold about 30 sculptures.
But he isn’t particularly fond of galleries. “Gallery owners
are not interested in art – only in selling art.” Letayf is a nonconformist.
It’s unlikely to find “please don’t touch” signs in front
of his sculptures. On the contrary, he invites people to touch the
sculptures, to feel the vibrations they emit. “Wood is something
alive,” he says. “I don’t like parting with my pieces, but I must
sell to continue.”
Letayf occasionally commissions bronze
reproductions of favorite sculptures.
Prices vary, but are mainly determined by size. “The Dermatologist
Who Lost His Hair” is a small piece
(7 cm × 11 cm × 11 cm). It is priced at $400. “Desire Consecrated”
is medium-sized (44 cm × 35 cm × 5 cm) and is priced at $1,800.
One of the larger sculptures, “Metamorphose”
(118 cm × 107 cm × 56 cm), costs $4,500.
