Friday, March 29, 2024 | Ramadan 18, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

UNESCO selects Omani artist mask design for COVID-19 awareness

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Muscat: For Alia al Farsi, people are the main subject of her abstract art. Her paintings communicate the links of human thoughts and feeling deeply etched in cultural settings. And her canvas can be anything from wide canvases to chairs, to poles.


And it was only natural the theme she chose to use on the facial mask in the international event of UNESCO’s campaign – an initiative by MEADOWS – Mediterranean Endeavours Advancing Development of Widespread Sustainability, which saw 250 designs from 120 countries, also had faces. UNESCO included Alia’s design for the mask, and the message Alia had was about staying home, being close to and being surrounded by loved ones.


“COVID-19 is very serious and everyone should be aware of it. This is the theme behind this painting. If you are safe, then your family is safe, which means your society is safe. We need to take COVID-19 very seriously,” said Al Farsi.


The pandemic period has also inspired her to paint with this particular theme reflecting what everyone is going through.


The international artist feels art is not an end. This is how she described art,“ Art has means of achieving internal peace and also to serve noble causes externally and hence I want my art to serve humanity and not just myself, It has the global appeal for beauty and ability to provide a silent yet poignant medium for expression and dialogue.”


Alia has been active in the arena of art for over 20 years and hosted several exhibitions in Oman. Her interest in art started at a young age and was mainly in literal paintings. With time her interest in abstract and figurative styles grew and now this is where she finds her expressions. There are always people standing or sitting and there is nature and their surroundings that are featured to convey her story and often features her family members, friends and people whom she observes.


Accordingly, her latest painting reflects on the lifestyle during COVID-19 and how much we now appreciate the company of family and not to forget mobile use and being online.


She has enjoyed international experience with exhibitions in Japan, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Korea, UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Turkey, Sweden, China, Germany, Kuwait, Iran, Qatar, Egypt and Syria amongst other countries.


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