Executed with acrylic on canvas, Untitled reveals a yellowish-orange ellipsoid floating at the upper register of the painting’s horizontal composition. Reminiscent of the sun, the imposing ellipsoid is contoured in brown; it stands against a light ochre background and is surrounded by a mass of minute, human-like figures. 

Osseiran depicts the human-like figures in a naïve graphical style; she draws a multitude of organic shapes delineated with a brown contour. Still, each figure has four extremities and a rounded upper head. Stylized in different sizes, the figures are distributed all over the painting’s surface. They range from large ones on the left side of the painting, to smaller ones aligned within an asymmetric diagonal grid on the right half of the painting.

Indeed, Osseiran’s practice has been greatly informed by Japanese art. This is no surprise for the Lebanese artist who studied graphic design in Tokyo, in the 1970s. Her choice of a grid structure, evocative of the geometric patterns common to Japanese art, demonstrates this influence. To reveal the gravitational force pulling the figures or ‘people’ towards the ‘sun’, Osseiran saturates the grid, and the lower register of the painting, with soft dabs of orange-ochre acrylic paint.

There is a purposeful juxtaposition of size in Osseiran’s painting, that highlights a stark contrast. At a closer look, the ‘people’ seem small, despite their multitude, when compared to the ‘sun’. The difference in proportion gets clearer as they get closer to it. Osseiran has underscored the ‘sun’s’ power over the ‘people’; they seem to be drawn to it from every direction.

Evidently, Osseiran’s Untitled revolves around the symbolic nature of celestial bodies. In this case, the ‘sun’ represents power rooted in its intense energy and ability to give life. It is given center stage through its singleness, three-dimensional form, and eye-catching position within the painting’s composition.

Expressing existential angst through natural forces, specifically solar representations, is common to Osseiran’s practice. For instance, in Untitled, she depicts the ‘sun’ as an imperfect ellipsoid positioned off-center. Furthermore, the distorted figures reverberate a sense of uneasiness. Seemingly, the ‘people’ struggle. Whether they try to reach for the ‘sun’ or resist its pull, their passage seems challenging.

Yet, the painting reflects an overall feeling of balminess, achieved through its monochromatic color palette of soft yellow, ochre, orange, and brown brush strokes. The ‘people’ seem to reflect the light of the ‘sun’, indicating a positive outlook above and beyond the struggles in life. In her abstract portrayal of the ‘sun’ and ‘people’ gravitating towards it, Osseiran gave viewers a surprisingly realistic representation of life, both luminous and painful.