"Click …the very sound of the shot is all what it takes to make our hearts jump," enthused members of Jeddah photographers group.
Six Saudi photographers with a passion for photography broke away from “The House of Photographers” to be their own masters.
Saud Mahjoub, Baker Sindi, Nabil Jambi, Fouad Sultan, Sultan Mandili and Abdul Aziz Ayash felt restricted by the regulations and confinement of the conventional system of “House of Photographers” — the governmental branch of Culture and Arts Society. They decided to form a group of their own. Thus the story of “Jeddah Photographers Group” began in 2002.
In three years the group managed to hold 14 successful exhibitions in cities in the Kingdom and in Lebanon. “We would not dream of holding all these displays at the House of Photographers,” they confessed. During their “House” days, the photographers were limited to only two exhibitions per year; a collective display and an individual one. “Photography is our passion,” said Baker Sindi. “We have so many works we want to share with people. Two displays in one year are not enough at all. We shoot some 200 to 400 pictures each year!”
The main reasons behind forming this new group were to have the freedom not only of the number of exhibitions per year, but also to having the chance to choose freely the pictures’ size and the style of frame. “We only wanted to activate the photography scene in Jeddah,” explained Nabil Jambi.
Authorities at “House of Photography”, however, did not welcome their step. They considered the Jeddah photographers act an artistic coup d’etat and suspended their memberships.
That did not stop them; it only energized the six to make the trip down the new, arduous road a success. In their latest exhibition at King Faisal Specialist Hospital, which ended last Monday, the artists presented different themes then various styles of photography. Landscape, still life, portrait and abstract through microphotography, the quality of pictures was clearly noticed.
Their work was revealing. Jambi’s focus on tiny details of an antique door at first sight looked like an abstract painting. It demonstrated the use of a camera and a keen eye to bring out the fine art in photography. Ayash’s close up pictures of scenery and insects showed his love of nature, where Sindi’s images of old historical buildings showed his feeling for tradition. Sultan’s pictures of shadowy buildings make one curious to know more about their inhabitants. The tranquil look on the veiled old woman eyes, taken by Mandili, conveys the Haj spirituality explicitly. Mahjoub’s symbolic black and white picture of a crab and an egg was stark and disturbing.
“For photographers there is nothing ugly, everything to us, no matter what, carries a certain hidden beauty,” Saud Mahjoub said. The procedure of taking photos is both spontaneous and planned they explained.
Like all creative artists in different fields photographers too have what is known as a “moment.” It is that itchy feeling that drives them to grab their cameras and roam around in search for a shot that meets their mood. Sometimes the artist plans the setting to deliver a certain message to the audience.
“The photographer goes back to his visual memory, derived from magazines, nature you name it, and uses it while taking a shot,” clarified Mahjoub. A usual scene that regular people pass without thought will draw their attention in seconds.
The difference between an ordinary photographer and artists is the aesthetic sense that the photo carries. “It’s only when the idea overcomes the physical dimension of a picture is considered art,” Jambi said.
“It’s not only the impression of the artist in a certain moment delivered in the picture, but part of us is locked in them too,” confessed the artists.
There were a few portraits available on display. Taking photos in Saudi Arabia is not an easy task at all, let alone those of people the group complained. “It really hurts us not being able to take pictures as much as we want.”
Photography, for those unaware, is prohibited in public places in the Kingdom. Only last month photographers were permitted to take pictures. However, the decision will be implemented after a year.
The group was held in prison in Yanbu for five hours after being caught photographing the old part of the city. It was only after they showed the officer their pictures and waited for him to explain their story to higher authorities they were released.
“That would not happen to foreign photographers,” said the artists. “Companies and even governmental establishments ask foreigners to photograph our heritage and deserts taking for granted that their work is better than ours.”
They provided the example of a five star hotel in Makkah that assigned Malaysian photographers the mission of taking pictures of the hotel. They were given SR300, 000.
“When companies ask us to take photographs, people expect us to work for free or sometimes as cheap as thirty riyals per picture,” added Mahjoub.
The artists believe strongly that their main role is to record the history and culture of Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately, the society does not allow that. People are intimidated when they see their cameras. Still society does not accept the concept of photography as an art; they only see it as threat. “One day I was in the Corniche taking pictures of the stones near the beach, when one man approached me complaining that I took a picture of his wife!” said Mahjoub.
Luckily people’s attitude is slowly changing. “In our last trip to Abha locals were more open and when they saw us with our cameras there no one complained,” said Ayash.
The eager photographers with their ideas and dreams seemed to revel in the hope that the curtain is slowly being lifted from the dark era when there were the taboos on photography. Only time will give a clear picture.
For more information visit: www.jeddahphotographers.com
