International artists depict Oman on canvas

Our language as artists is the combination of the colours and canvases, said Oman’s renowned artist Anwar Sonya. Sonya was giving the finishing touches to his second painting that depicts a wedding in Dhofar Governorate at Bait Al Zubair’s First International Art Forum that began on August 12 at Al Bander Resort, Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah. Twenty artists from Oman and other countries have come together with the theme – Oman. Dr Mohammed al Shahi, General Manager of Bait Al Zubair Foundation, said, “It is with the intent of bridging cultures and relationships among people around the world and promoting Omani heritage in both local and international markets that Bait Al Zubair initiates programmes like this. This event is a first for the foundation in which several local and international artists have been brought together to create artworks from scratch based on, but not limited to the forum’s main theme, Omani Architecture.” Visitors to the venue have been enjoying looking at the artists painting live in the last three days. Yasser al Abdullah from Al Bander Resort said the artists will continue to paint live for five days in total. The exhibition of the completed works will be on display at Bait Al Zubair for two weeks starting from August 17 from 7 pm onwards. The concept of the forum is to have 20 artists from different countries come together in Oman and paint live for five days and at the same time share knowledge and add value to their own talent. There were different artistic media although it was all on canvas. “I have always used mixed media and here too that is what I have opted to use. With canvas and paint, I have used jute,” explained Moosa Omar, the Omani pioneer artist who organised this event with Bait Al Zubair. “It is the forum’s goal to provide a platform for the different creative patterns, cultural knowledge and experiences to be shared to everyone. This is also a great opportunity for the world to see the beauty of Oman through these artists’ brilliant artworks.” Participants at the International Art Forum include Omani pioneers Anwar Sonya, Hussain Obaid, Fakhrataj al Ismaily, Sami al Syabi, Mazin al Mamari, Mohammed al Farsi, Idrees al Hooti and Moosa Omar, who will be joined by artists Abdulraheem Salim from the UAE, Nahar al Marzooq from KSA, Hanadi al Darwish from Qatar, Abd Elwahab Abdul Mohsin from Egypt, Ali Reda from Iraq, Baker Ben Fredj from Tunisia, Ramiz Murad Abbasov from Azerbaijan, Ba Haiden from Germany, Sara Khalafi from Iran, Elena Shapovalova from Russia, and Bahraini Omar al Rashid. Hanadi al Darwish has brought in the influence of fabric prints used in Oman, while Elena Shapovalova has chosen the castles as the subject. Omar al Rashid said, “The women of Oman have a distinct talent for creating their own colour contrasts in the fabrics they use. I am celebrating it through my paintings because it is important that the Omani women maintain it till today.” Fakhrataj al Ismaily said, “I have drawn inspiration from the door of Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque and the sea we are surrounded with.” Dr Al Shahi concluded, “This forum is a result of the framework of Bait Al Zubair Foundation’s corporate cultural responsibility. Bait Al Zubair has widely evolved in conducting its various projects that provide added value to culture and art.” Lakshmi Kothaneth