
Acrylics and Gold Leaf on Paper by Sohret Basaran Howells (Scheherazade)
Doors within Doors - Faces
Sohret Basaran Howells (Scheherazade)
Sohret is a contemporary visual artist, award-winning writer, and former university lecturer currently based in Exeter, Devon, UK. Born in Cyprus, her work is heavily influenced by her Mediterranean heritage and explores themes of abstraction, the human figure, and universal symbols.
She primarily uses acrylics on canvas, often applying the paint with palette knives to create layered, textured finishes. She sometimes uses delicate touches of brush strokes when seeks for tranquility. Her style ranges from pure abstraction to figurative abstract concepts.
In October 2016, she established her own studio and gallery space, The ArtHouse in Exeter. The studio serves as both a creation space and a venue for private viewings and creative discussions. She was a winner of the Mellow Art Special Prize in 2020. Her work has been exhibited internationally in London, Japan, and North Cyprus, as well as locally in Devon.
Her portfolio includes collections such as "Walking Through Abstraction" and "Tesseract of People and Nature". Original paintings, limited edition giclée prints, and cards are available through her official web-site, various platforms and exhibitions: 8 solo and more than 30 group exhibitions.
Before immersing herself fully in the art world, Sohret had an extensive academic career. She previously served as a university lecturer over 25 years. She holds a B.A. in Management from Middle East Technical University, as well as an MBA and a PhD in Tourism from the University of Exeter. Beyond visual arts, she is a best-selling novelist.
As a small child, I enjoyed looking out from our windows or doors, trying to capture moments, views and faces that would enter into the frame of my vision. As I grew up, I realised that you can use a window or a door like a picture frame, changing the picture as you move from left to right or go higher or lower in front of that door. I made a series of doors within doors, first of which became my bestseller novel’s cover. In this painting I captured different views moving my chair from one point to another, overlapping them to show edges of different perspectives focusing on variety of faces that appeared and disappeared passing by on a cloudy day with glimpses of sunshine.
Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Paper
50x70cm
Framed under glass
















