At 88, Britt Boutros Ghali’s First UK Solo Show Reveals an Artist Still Defining Abstraction
This October, London’s Varvara Roza Galleries presents the first UK solo exhibition of Britt Boutros Ghali, the Norwegian-born artist whose six-decade career has been a relentless exploration of abstract expressionism. At 88, Ghali is not only still painting every day but producing some of the most powerful, vibrant work of her life — a rare opportunity to witness an artist in full creative bloom.
Born in the northern town of Svolvær in 1937, Ghali’s early exposure to the shifting postwar northern light shaped the instinctive abstract language that would define her practice. Since the early 1970s, she has lived in Egypt, where her mosaic-adorned home and studio on the Mediterranean coast have become a cultural landmark. Her work — large-scale canvases alive with gestural energy, colour, and rhythm — fuses the spontaneity of action painting with a soulful, healing presence that resonates deeply in today’s fractious world.
Photos by Ayman Lofty
Ghali’s paintings are more than visual experiences; they are expressions of a life dedicated to beauty, resilience, and creative freedom. As she explains, painting is her way of emptying herself and allowing an energy to grow organically — a process that imbues each piece with raw vitality and emotion. Her work is held in major public and private collections worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in Egypt and the Queen Noor Museum of Modern Art in Jordan, and her contributions have been recognized with prestigious awards such as Norway’s St. Olav’s Order and Egypt’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Women in the Arts.
The London exhibition, running from 2 to 20 October during Frieze Week, brings together Ghali’s newest canvases, showcasing the evolution of her distinctive style. The timing is no accident: the event offers art lovers and collectors a chance to engage with an artist whose legacy spans continents and whose work continues to challenge and redefine abstraction.
The exhibition also highlights Ghali’s remarkable mosaic house in Agamy, Egypt — a living artwork she created as a form of healing after the death of her husband. The villa’s intricate mosaics and murals reflect the same fearless creativity that animates her canvases and have attracted visitors from around the world.
This show is more than a retrospective; it’s a celebration of an artist who continues to redefine abstraction at an age when most would have long retired. Britt Boutros Ghali’s “Life in Colour” offers a rare, immersive encounter with an artistic force still pushing boundaries, proving that creativity knows no age.
Exhibition details:
Life in Colour: Britt Boutros Ghali
Exhibition runs: 2–20 October 2025
Varvara Roza Galleries, 8 Duke Street, St James’s, London SW1W 6BN
Elena Leo is the Arts & Lifestyle Editor of Ikon London Magazine.
