Marwan Nahlé’s exhibition, ‘The Domains of the Mystical,’ is on display at the Sweet Branch Library in Salt Lake City until December 20, 2025. The show presents about two dozen small paintings, each no larger than a notebook. The works feature swirling brushwork and abstract color fields, with small human figures set against large backgrounds. This style encourages viewers to consider the relationship between people and their environment.
Nahlé is the son of a postwar Lebanese artist. He spent his early years in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East before moving to Utah in the late 1990s. He was attracted to the desert landscape and began working at Phillips Gallery. There, he developed a visual style focused on atmosphere and emotion rather than detailed storytelling.
His approach draws on Romanticism but differs from traditional landscape painting. Instead of detailed scenes, Nahlé’s works use simplified figures and expressive color. The figures, often alone or in small groups, emphasize the scale of their surroundings. The collection uses color and mood to convey its themes…