PAINTING, collage, calligraphy, photography, and other types of artworks — the common factor was contemporary Saudi art at the London-based exhibition “Edge of Arabia” at the Brunei Gallery of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).
The artwork was as varied as the 10,000 visitors who came to the exhibition from Oct. 16 until Saturday Dec. 13. “We wanted the exhibition to be diverse. The view of Saudi culture is quite homogonous. Average British people think that Saudis are all similar because of what they see on TV. Saudi men dress in one color as well as Saudi women. I wanted to show people through the different mediums and ideas that this is a really diverse country,” said Stephen Stapleton, Director of Off-screen Education Program and one of the organizers.
The exhibition attracted art students and professors, Saudis based in London and even British Muslims who felt connected to Saudi Arabia through their religion and wanted to see more aspects of the country.
“We had different audiences,” Stapleton said. “The British audience was very surprised. People felt that they left the exhibition with a better understanding of Saudi Arabia and wanted to find out more about some of the ideas behind the artwork. The exhibition aimed to reach out to Western audiences. I think British Muslims really enjoyed it because they see themselves connected to Saudi Arabia but they don’t see this side of Saudi Arabia.”
The work of 17 artists was included in the exhibition. Athan, the call to prayer, was heard in the gallery at prayer times and Islamic music was played. “I had never heard of Saudi contemporary art before,” said Lisa, a Londoner.
Some were even surprised that there were Saudi women artists and that they were allowed to show their work in public as Rachel Katz, a 38 year-old Israeli London-based medical worker said. “I do not know much about Saudi culture because I cannot physically cross the Saudi border. But this exhibition gave me the chance to look at different features of the culture. I also did not know that Saudi women could show their work in public exhibitions.”
Maha Malluh from Riyadh displayed four photograms, photos taken without a camera. Her theme was “Tradition and Modernity”. Malluh has always been a lover of collage. She started integrating it with photography ten years ago. “I felt that I could express my ideas more through photograms than photography. I could bring out my creativity more.” She puts things under the microscope and prints them on paper. “I like to use my hands more when working. I can choose my themes in photograms,” she said.
In her photograms, Malluh showed things that have a reference to the Saudi culture and traditions, such as the mirwad (old-fashioned eyeliner) and dalla (Arabic coffee pot) all joined in one tableau. She wanted to display something that would reflect the Saudi culture in London.
“I wanted to draw the young generation’s attention to the simple beautiful priceless things in our lives; things that are available in our houses. These things are related to memories in your past that you need to remember when you grow old. The young generation is paying more attention now to materialistic things including branded watches and fashion for example,” Malluh said.
Keeping the essence of Saudi traditions and not only the objects was her concern. The dalla refers to Arab hospitality and generosity. “This is a statement for people from Western culture showing that we are subject to modernity but at the same time, we hold to our culture and tradition,” she said.
Manal Al-Dowayan from Dhahran participated with two collections that are “I Am” and “The Choice” which were worked on for three years. In the “I Am” collection, Al-Dowayan was trying to show the different professional roles that a Saudi woman can play in her society. “The majority of people limit the talents of Saudi women to education and medicine. But there Saudi women who can do everything but they are never highlighted. So how are they supposed to inspire younger girls? There are not many who imagine themselves petroleum engineers or architects for example.” The women that she photographed in the professions of petroleum engineer, educator and architect are the actual occupations of those women.
Linking seventeen Saudi artists from different parts of the country was not an easy task for Stapleton and the organizers. He had to visit them in Saudi Arabia and urge them to participate in the exhibition. “This was a tough thing to do because it hasn’t been done before. I was very inspired by how the Saudi artists treated me and I know they deserved this exhibition,” said Stapleton.
He believes this exhibition helped create a dialogue between Saudis and Westerners who were introduced to the art. “I don’t understand why there isn’t more dialogue going on between Saudis and the West. There is a lot of business so why isn’t there more human dialogue? “
Abdulaziz Ashour from Jeddah said: “The voice of the artist is louder than before, and although there are people who remain suspicious of artists and what they do, the voice of art itself will always be loudest. When we die, it’s our art that survives us.”
For more information visit: www.edgeofarabia.com
