Tala Worrell

Tala Worrell (b. 1991) was born in New York City and raised in Abu Dhabi. Worrell’s cultural exposure as a Lebanese-American woman raised in the United Arab Emirates is steeped in diverse sets of values; prevailing is the necessity of acceptance and openness to conflicting ways of understanding. Through this lens, Worrell’s approach to abstraction is distilled in the belief that every aesthetic decision involves the resolution of ethical dilemmas. In her democratic use of materials – oils, alkyds, and industrial paints are as valuable as less common media like za’atar, chia seeds, and sesame seeds – Worrell poignantly reflects on her multivalent background. Dichotomies fuel Worrell’s work, which involves wide-ranging experimental processes, and she employs tensions in the contrasts of surfaces, material choices, and chromatic decisions to her advantage as she considers and processes quotidian physical and visual encounters. In her works, Worrell deftly navigates the chasm between her familial and cultural roots and her Western education.

Tala Worrell earned a B.A. from Brown University (Providence, RI) in 2014, and an M.F.A. in Painting from Rhode Island School of Design (Providence, RI) in 2022. In 2014-15, Worrell was a Fellow at the 10 month-long Ashkal Alwan Home Workspace Program (Beirut, Lebanon) where she worked with resident professors Kader Attia, Walid Raad, and Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige, among others; in 2015-16, she was the recipient of a nine month-long Emerging Artists Fellowship at the Salama bint Hamdan Foundation (Abu Dhabi, UAE) established in partnership with Rhode Island School of Design; and a residency at the Abu Dhabi Cultural Foundation in 2020. Worrell worked as a researcher and painting assistant for painter and filmmaker Sarah Morris from 2014-19. Worrell’s works have been exhibited at Beirut Art Center (Lebanon) and Warehouse 421 (Abu Dhabi, UAE). Worrell lives and works in Los Angeles.

Tala Worrell is represented by Franklin Parrasch Gallery.