JEDDAH, 16 January 2006 — Obstacles will not stand in the way of success if there is a strong will present which is determined to overcome them. History is full of hundreds of stories of people who fought against amazing odds in order to achieve their dreams and aspirations. Sometimes, however, history marches along without paying much attention to the achievements of normal individuals.
Though the fine art scene in the Kingdom may seem to be in the process of development, many people forget that any progress had been made primarily through individual initiative. Neither the ministries of culture nor of youth put much effort into nurturing young Saudi artistic talents or even in recognizing well-known local artists. If the artist is a woman, the problem becomes even more serious since there are no women’s clubs and communication between women artists is virtually non-existent.
The fact is that there are no institutions in Saudi Arabia which specialize in teaching art. The only place women can earn a degree in art is in a home economics college at a university that offers art as part of its home economics curriculum.
Such programs aren’t enough, say the women at the Saudi House of Artists Society. The society offers them a chance to display their work, but they want more. They want to share their experiences with one another and to discuss and debate art. They asked the officials of the society to allow them to meet there every week. When the officials agreed, the women drew up an agenda of topics to be discussed and they have now been meeting for several weeks.
“It’s a great chance for all of us,” said painter Taghrid Al-Gadaani. Not long ago, it was her turn to talk about painters and how they used pastels in their work. She also highlighted the importance of developing an artistic eye, stressing the fact that each one has — and must develop — her own perspective of looking at things. “We want to benefit from each other and gain as much as we can,” the artists said.
Their weekly Wednesday meetings will continue and will cover different subjects and matters of interest and concern. “One person will talk about collage and others will deal with subjects of interest to them,” Taghrid explained. “Anyone fortunate enough to attend one of these meetings will feel the talent and the desire to learn and create among these young women. Each one dreams of producing something memorable and each one deserves the chance — and all the support required — to do so.”
