JEDDAH, 21 July 2007 — Six months and 11 days ago Ataullah Khan, a 55-year-old Jeddah-based Indian artist, was browsing through a magazine when he came across a picture of Crown Prince Sultan. Inspired by the picture, he set out to do a portrait in a very distinct style.
After finishing from his day job in a local printing company, Ataullah would go home and toil on a canvas in his living room with a black 0.4-point pen for two to three hours every day. After more than six months and almost 22.5 million stabs at the canvas, Ataullah finally finished his masterpiece: A portrait of the crown prince made entirely of dots.
Measuring 100 cms by 70 cms, the portrait upon first glance looks like a detailed ink or pencil sketch. Only after close scrutiny does one appreciate the technique known in artist parlance as pointillism, or stipple: Millions of carefully placed dots that are used to portray shading, depth and form. One of the most well known pointillists is the 19th Century neo-impressionist French painter Georges-Pierre Seurat.
“I used a Stabilo ink pen available at any local stationary shop, which I had to change after approximately every 50,000 dots,” said Atauallah.
Proud of the near 22.5 million dots that make up the portrait, Ataullah explained their significance.
“22.5 million corresponds to the Kingdom’s population. One dot per citizen,” he said.
Actually, the portrait is 3 dots short of 22.5 million, 3 dots Ataullah hopes the crown prince himself will dab on the paper if he gets the chance to meet and personally present the portrait to the prince.
An artist by profession — prior to coming to Saudi Arabia — Ataullah worked as an art director in a newspaper in Mumbai. He drew several portraits of famous Indian celebrities and politicians.
Dilip Kumar, a famous Bollywood actor of the 1950s and 60s, is one of his more famous subjects. Ataullah did a portrait of him by using a pencil and coal and presented it to the delighted actor.
