P to act

How one dress inspired an to create a world of possibilities ARTIST

Kane-Murrell doesn’t remember the name of the painting or the artist, but she has never forgotten the way a piece of art moved her to act

By Karla Peterson

The first time artist Kathleen Kane-Murrell went to a museum, she got in trouble. She was 16 or 17 years old and not well-versed in museum etiquette, so when she saw a painting on the wall of the San Diego Museum of Art that moved her, she felt compelled to reach out and touch it.

they feel the images are approachable,” Kane-Murrell said during an interview at Sophie’s Kensington Gallery, where her new one-woman show is on exhibit. “I re ally don’t care if people know what they’re abo ut. I just hope the paintings bring up memories of their own life experiences and speak to them about being human.”

Oops. “I just went right up and put my hand on it,” Kane-Murrell said. “And this sweet old docent came up to me and said, ‘Oh my dear, you can’t touch that.’ I had never been to a museum before, and I didn’t have any guidance. I just didn’t know.”

Kane-Murrell doesn’t remember the name of the painting or the artist, but she has never forgotten the way this piece of art moved her to act. A few decades later, it inspired her to create paintings that help viewers get in touch with themselves.

“I hope when people come here that The show is called “Addressing Her Story,” and it is all about exploring one dress and a whole bunch of feelings. Its 16 paintings offer 16 variations on the same elegant dress. And with each dress comes a story. Or multiple stories, if the artist has her way.

The deep-blue dress featured in “Into the Woods” has graffiti-like scribbles at its hem and ominous animal-like scratches on the bodice. Maybe they are a reference to the sexual harassment she faced as a young woman working in the retail industry. Maybe you will see something else. The pink, gold and orange pattern covering the dress in “Memory” could be bubbles of sparkling water. They could also be chains. The words “wishing, waiting, want ing” scrolling in the background could be th e hopes of a girl heading for the prom. They could be the internal monologue of someone wondering when their life is going to start.

“The contour of the dress really speaks to me. It’s something I can use to express what I want to express about memory, place and experience,” the 66-year-old Bay Park artist said.

“I think a lot of women have a special rela tionship to clothing, but we tend to act like i t isn’t important. To me, this image feels like it has strength. When you see that form, you know it’s a woman. Deciding to use this as a template for paintings was a real ‘Aha!’ moment. I thought, ‘I can do this. This image works.’ ”

rell did not think art was something she could do. As the second-oldest of six children growing up in a blue-collar family, Kane-Murrell said the big messages she got from her parents were (1) Don’t get pregnant; and (2) Plan on supporting yourself. With the idea of making art so far off the table it wasn’t even in the room, Kane-Murrell expressed herself by sewing her own clothes. And when she went to San Diego State, she majored in marketing.

After graduating in 1976, Kane-Murrell worked for the Gap and then for a local retail company. It was at the latter job that she had a #MeToo sexual-harassment moment that caused her to pack up her desk and leave. She remembers feeling worthless for a long time. After that, she dedicated herself to starting and raising a family with her husband, Tom. They had two boys, and when the boys went to school, Kane-Murrell offered to help amp up the art program. That project turned into Fine Artists, an art-education program that trains adult volunteer docents to teach Kane-Mur rell’s curriculum in elementary schools. K ane-Murrell has since been an “Outstanding Educator” by the San Diego Co unty Office of Education, and her students’ works have appeared in many local art shows, including the San Diego Museum of Art’s Young Art Show.

One of those works is “She Swims Ahead,” a shimmering blue dress shot through with the gold and orange flashes of koi fish, including one that looks ready to swim right off the canvas. The painting is a tribute to the famous pond at the Nanzenji temple in Kyoto. It is also a gift from the artist Kane-Murrell is now to the art-loving girl she used to be. The one who couldn’t keep her passions to herself.

And while she was teaching Kane-Murrell was also learning. She studied with Heath er Pieters at the San Diego Museum of Art an d with the late Reed Cardwell, who encouraged her to do work that explored the human condition. She had her first group show in 2007. Many group and solo shows followed, including “Prom Dress: Seventeen on Being 17” at the William D. Cannon Art Gallery in Carlsbad, the 2018 group show the inspired the works that appear in “Addressing Her Story.” “For me, this painting captures the mo ment where I looked down and saw this o ne fish leading all of the other fish. She was way out in front, and when I looked at her, I was just sure it was a girl,” Kane-Mur rell said. “ This is what art means to me. It is not about getting into shows. It’s about making a painting and having that pure joy of loving how the paint looks on the canvas. That feeling of saying, ‘Oh my gosh, this is amazing.’ ”

An impetuous PHOTOGRAPHER

Despite the challenges he faces day-to-day, Qatar-based photographer Bosco Menezes revels his craft and put it’s to better use for the cause he believes in – social upliftment of people with special needs

By Safvana Yasmine

22 Society Bosco Menezes

Having dedicated almost two decades in media industry, Qatar-based professional photographer Bosco Menezes has carved a niche f or himself both in photography and community welfare circles. Despite the challenges he faces day-to-day, Menezes revels his craft and puts it to better use for the cause he believes in – the social uplift ment of people with special needs. With an un usually broad range of quality work – conflict reportage, social documentary, equine life, portraiture, and abstract – many would agree that his photographs have been an endowment. He shot his first set of acclaimed photographs while handling one of the largest PR accounts of the time for Asian Games in 2006. The work was published in various interna tional publications gifting him recognition in th e world of photojournalists. Society caught up with Menezes for a chat.

Excerpts:

Q What influenced your shift to photography from a PR background? A I believe it’s in-born. Everybody can learn photography, but I feel that not everybody can learn the art in photography. After all, artist is born an artist.

After 2006 stint at the Asian Games, I realised that I find my sanctum in photography. As you can notice, I have these nervous twitchings, but when I pick up my camera, I become still and calm, instinctively. Photography comes naturally to me. it gives me “Om”. It gives me serenity. I used to shun away

from myself. However, I conquered my insecurities with time and let my work speak for myself. With all my inhibitions, I am trying to get the best out of life. I want to set an example through my work in life and hence, photography.

Q Can you shed some light on the evolution of your photography and the stories you tell through the images you capture? A In the beginning, I did a bit of sports photography. Apart from these, I have been doing corporate calendars for the past 8 years. My recent collaboration was with Qatar Museums Authority and documented all the heritage villages situated in the North. Now, I tell everyday life stories. I pick-up stories with human elements and nature. Areas like food and astronomy or any photography which requires too much technical skills postproduction, I do not get involved. I have come to enjoy capturing portraits, especially that of children, as my photography evolved. Similarly, every event I conduct, I plug-in an NGO as well.

When I visited India for the last Christmas, I travelled to rural areas of Mumbai, Maharashtra, and saw what Qatar Creating Vision was doing there. Qatar Fund for Development and Qatar Creating Vision along with Orbis eye hospital is helping over 50, 000 children to correct their vision all over India. They are doing it in Nepal and Bangladesh as well. That’s why I am an activist and not a social media influencer. I want to show people action through my photography. To challenge people, educate people, and bring communities together – through my photography and my initiative BigBMeetup.

Q What goes into creating a series or photo-essay? Is there a

routine procedure that you follow? A Spontaneity is something I enjoy in work and life. As an impetuous person who goes with the gut feeling when it comes to my profession or personal life, I explore not knowing what exactly is in stock for me. My life is quite removed from the confinements of set mundane routines. But there is a method to the madness. Otherwise, organising such colossal events for a diverse community like that of Qatar would be beyond the realm of understanding. So far I have organised five solo and a community exhibition which I curated myself.

Q Tell us about a life-changing event that altered your perception towards life or something that changed the way you tell your stories through the images? A I did have a downturn 3-4 years earlier. Then came the 2017 blockade. It was my first time documenting a conflict. Though challenging it was, I felt that this aspect was important as it enabled me to communicate visually to my audience and connect with them on a visceral level in a unique manner.

Q In the age of social media influencers, where do you find yourself? A See, I have lived through generations of hardcore journalists to social media influencers. Though people do insist on categorising me into the latter category, I call myself a social media activist. I rescue animals. Even before social media came into play, I have been rescuing animals. I have been doing this for the past 25 years.

I was the first photojournalist to document the blockade. My way of documenting children with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani’s photograph and Qatar flags during the time of crisis received national recognition and appreciation. The images effectively ignited the flame of my national career and gave me the boost to work on my CSR initiative BigBMeetup.

Q Tell us more about BigBMeetup. What is in stock for BigBMeetUp in 2020? A BigBMeetup is all about the community. The initiative is my brainchild which I founded in 2018 in memory of my mother who passed away 21 years ago. She worked in Qatar in the 1970s with Oredoo (Qatar Telecom then) for 15 years. Since I am closely connected to this country, I have been bringing diverse communities (from expats to locals) living here in forbearance, together. With every chapter, the BigBMeetup is becoming bigger and bigger and I become

more excited in telling people about this community meet-up.

The recent one is the 6th chapter of the same. It is inspired by the resilience of people in Qatar and I have four topics that I focus on under this initiative - Sports and Wellness, Sustainability, Special Needs, and Celebrating Arts.

When I started in 2018, the focus was wellness and this would be the third meet-up I am having under the same banner. While Sustainability is an integral part of everything required by society, people who are differently-abled are its core. To my understanding, every person has one or the other special needs which is often not recognised by society. I do not agree upon the usage of the term disabled. I play with the phonetics of the word and changed it to ‘This-Abled’. So people with disabilities are real people with This-Ability, a better ability than all of us put together. This year I am planning an event in Paris. My first BigBMeetup outside Qatar. I chose the city because it’s the Year of Culture between Qatar and France. So I am looking forward to something in Paris.

Q BigBFotografi has become a synonym to your name. Currently, how involved are you with this passion of yours? A Last year I barely gave time for BigBFotografi as my entire focus on BigBMeetup. Nevertheless, I am planning to curate two photo-exhibitions this year. One of the exhibitions will be based on sustainable art – for children and artists from different nationalities in Qatar.

Another photography exhibition called ‘Elements of Qatar’ with a monochrome abstract theme capturing images of the land is in its developing phase. The pictures are meant to evoke the imagination and perception of the audience. I am planning to have around 40 images displayed under the banner.

There will be two travelling photo exhibitions this year, one in Qatar and one may be outside Qatar. Hopefully, in the next six months, you will see the light of it .

Q Where do you find your creative inspiration from when you work on a project? Is there a photographer or an artist who influences you?

A Not really. Photography is something I am genuinely involved in and an area that I keep working on. I garner my influence from nature and wildlife around me. Along with the living elements, I like abstracts and architectural buildings. In simple terms, I get inspired by my surroundings. I believe, I possess a unique

angle of my own, a perception that is distinct when it comes to photography. As a very laid-back person when it comes to reading books, I am not a bookworm who goes by rules. I like to experiment. I feel I make my own rules. I feel I am a haphazard photographer. Hence, when it comes to technical knowledge when most of the photographers use photoshop or

Bosco Menezes (third from left) and other dignitaries at the BigBMeetUp 2020.

lightroom, but I shy away from it. Honestly speaking, I do not know how to work on photoshop. I like to portray people in their real form - with all the beauty and blemishes. Enhanced images do not represent genuine or reality.

Q Speaking about your love for art, what do you love the most? A I sketch and doodle because it has a very calming effect on me. As an artist, to grow, you need to create your own space and rules without restricting your niche by channeling your creativity. I believe in the inclusiveness of art rather than exclusivity. I also think it’s also the personality of the person as well. My mind is not settled, it gets wavered. This again is an art for me. Having grown-up in Doha, all these years my subject has been mosques. I can sketch the splendid minarets of mosques even in my sub-conscious state and that’s one of the topics I fondly indulge in while creating images using my pen.

Q With an emerging trend in mobile photography, do you have preferences when it comes to the equipment you use? A My first love will always be a camera. Although I recently bought a new phone pertaining to the fact that carrying a camera everywhere is not a plausible

option and sometimes I find stories on the go. Nevertheless, I strongly believe that any professional or semi-professional photographer would always opt for a camera when it comes to capturing the stories he or she wants to tell.

However, phone photography is picking up a lot as well. Some of the phones are even better than average-professional cameras these days. The phone cameras have better quality and easy-to-use aspect which lures the users.

Q What is the current project you are involved in? A This year, I am trying to dive deeper into my passion for art and photography, and get down to the nuts and bolts of BigBFotografi which got sidelined in the shadow of my brainchild BigBMeetup. As of my on-going project, I am in the process of documenting the lives of garbage collector; the men who literally takes the trash out of our life without a single statement of displeasure. We expect them to come every day and we are habituated to their presence in our life that we forget their importance. So I call them “The Unseen Heroes of Qatar.” While we slip into our sweet slumber every night, these unsung heroes get on to grease their elbows and even get cut or wounded somedays. Their resilience is an inspiration.