An art exhibition depicting an array of feelings on a single female facial image was praised by Ahmed Al- Tayeb, director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Makkah region, in addition to diplomats from different consulates, at the Art and Culture Society in Jeddah recently.

Norah Al-Qahtani exhibited almost 65 paintings with different expressions, aesthetic qualities, color contrast, moods, desires, feelings and beauty.

“Through my paintings, I tried to express that women have common feelings and desires. They want freedom, they want to be able to express themselves with colorful clothing, different hairstyles, thoughts, dreams and other qualities.

Most importantly, I wanted to highlight what they often cannot share or express,” said Alqahtani. She said that all her paintings contain the same face with a long neck, but that each of the paintings express different moods, themes and feelings.

She further said that through her paintings, she wanted to convey that Saudi women are beautiful, intelligent and have unique dreams, feelings and expressive abilities.

Nihar Marzok, head of the Art and Culture Society Center, said that she put a very special type of art work on display. “Her exhibition was very colorful thanks to her use of color combination, contrast and effectiveness.”

“I am impressed by Norah’s exhibition, as are my friends from the various consulates,” he said.

Ebrahim Edries, the South African consul general, also admired the efforts of the artist and praised the expressiveness of her work, saying she managed to capture the true essence of emotion in painting. “Here is another example of Saudi women’s capabilities,” he said.