Bushra Fakhoury, The Artist Known For Sculpting Humanity Through Myth and Memory

British-Lebanese artist Bushra Fakhoury has long been a formidable presence in the world of contemporary sculpture and fine art. Her practice spans decades and intertwines classical technique with deeply personal explorations of culture, identity, and mythology. Bushra received a Bachelor of Art and Major of Fine Art at the American University of Beirut, and she got a PhD in Philosophy, Institute of Education at the University of London. Fakhoury’s approach has always defied categorisation. Fakhoury’s approach has always defied categorisation. She works across multiple disciplines, creating pieces that bridge East and West, ancient and modern, the spiritual and the surreal. Her ability to fuse cultural storytelling with sculptural precision has made her one of the most compelling artistic voices in the  art scene for many years.

Fakhoury’s forthcoming exhibition, TRANSMUTE, marks a defining and personal moment in her career. Presented as a side-by-side mother–son joint solo exhibition, this will be the first of its kind in the UK and will showcase over 100 previously unseen artworks. The collection spans painting, printmaking, photography, and sculpture, offering an expansive survey of her evolving artistry. While her son presents his own contemporary vision, Fakhoury’s work continues to explore timeless questions of human existence, and belonging, making the exhibition not just a generational dialogue but a deeply personal conversation about legacy and creativity within family.

Her work is rooted in her heritage and shaped by her life in Britain, forming a bridge between two cultural landscapes. Themes of displacement and memory thread through her art, as she reimagines fragments of her heritage into universal expressions of emotion and form. Fakhoury’s fascination with mythology and human archetypes runs throughout her sculptures, whether depicting divine figures, metamorphosed beings, or mythic guardians, each rendered with the fluid grace and emotional intensity that have become her hallmark.

Fakhoury’s practice is an interest in transformation, the tension between the physical and the metaphysical, the earthly and the divine. Her figures often appear in the midst of change, their forms suspended between flesh and spirit. Through this visual language, she explores how identity itself is a living, evolving form. Her sculptures embody strength and fragility in equal measure, suggesting that transformation also as much but renewal as it is destruction. This sense of metamorphosis is what allows her work to transcend cultural boundaries, speaking to something elemental and human.

Her artistic voice, shaped by her Lebanese roots, works across mediums such as bronze, resin, and clay, Fakhoury’s pieces carry both a timeless sensibility and a modern awareness of society’s complexities. Her sculptures are not static objects, but living allegories that are stories rendered in form.

Among her most celebrated works is “The Dance”, a bronze sculpture depicting two abstracted figures intertwined in perpetual motion. The piece captures her fascination with rhythm and duality, exploring how relationships, between people, cultures, or internal selves, are constantly evolving. It has become emblematic of her belief that art should embody connection, not distance. Another significant piece, “Metamorphosis”, encapsulates Fakhoury’s ongoing dialogue with the theme of transformation. The sculpture depicts a human form emerging from layers of textured bronze, simultaneously breaking free and dissolving into its surroundings. It speaks to rebirth, resilience, and the fluid nature of identity, concepts deeply rooted in her experience as a woman navigating the Western art world.

Among her most talked-about pieces is her gargoyle sculpture at The Mandrake Hotel in London, a striking work that merges playfulness with profound symbolism. Perched on top of the hotel’s lush, art-filled interior, the piece oversaw the proceedings during a private dinner celebrating Fakhoury’s upcoming exhibition. The gargoyle, long associated with protection and guardianship, overlooks the space as if watching over the creative exchange that took place below. It’s a fitting emblem of Fakhoury’s art: both protective and provocative, rooted in mythology yet alive with contemporary sensibility.

Fakhoury’s accolades reflect a career of both artistic excellence and cultural impact. Her works have been exhibited internationally, from galleries in London and Paris to institutions in the Middle East and the United States. She has been commissioned for several public art projects and her sculptures can be found in both private and public collections around the world. Beyond the accolades, however, her practice is defined by a desire to bridge dialogue, between generations, cultures, and ideas through the enduring power of form.

In her upcoming show, audiences can expect a rare glimpse into Fakhoury’s multidimensional world. The 100+ never-before-seen works promise to showcase her full artistic vocabulary, from intricate print studies and intimate paintings to monumental sculptures and surreal photographic compositions. Together, they offer a portrait of an artist deeply in tune with both her inner landscape and the shifting cultural world around her. Each piece contributes to a broader meditation on creation and transformation.

Bushra Fakhoury’s art speaks of continuity, between parent and child, body and spirit, tradition and modernity. The forthcoming exhibition is an intergenerational dialogue that celebrates the power of artistic inheritance. Just as her gargoyle stands guard over the creative spaces of London, her body of work continues to watch over the intersection of cultures, histories, and identities, reminding us that the truest art is that which protects and transforms in equal measure.

For more information on the artist and the TRANSMUTE exhibition, please visit https://bfakhoury.com/