issue 43 // earth & ever after by Design Magazine

Art intelligence. Distilled. Art news at your fingertips

UBS Planet Art is a new iPhone® and iPad® app that offers you a distilled view of the vast range of art news, reviews and information across the art world. The app presents the most relevant and trending topics, allowing you to stay firmly on top of the world of contemporary art. ubs.com/planetart

EDITION

No relationship, association, affiliation or endorsement is claimed, suggested or implied between UBS and Apple Inc. Images used in this advertisement are used with permission. UBS Saudi Arabia is licensed by the Capital Market Authority of Saudi Arabia. © UBS 2016. The key symbol and UBS are among the registered and unregistered trademarks of UBS. iPad® and iPhone ® are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc. All rights reserved.

6K_2000_UBS_Planet_Art_Jeddah_410x225_EN-US_v3.indd 1

28.01.16 14:50

FOUNDER & CREATIVE DIRECTER KHOLOUD ATTAR GRAPHIC DESIGNER JOMANA GHANDORA PUBLIC RELATIONS SAMAR BAABAAD BASHAIR BARYIAN EDITORIAL TEAM ESRAA EMAD MASHAEL ALAMRI ATHARI HURAIB ABEER HURAIB ALIA ISMAIL

PHOTOGRAPHY IDRISS ENTERTIANMENT KHALID JOE ACCOUNTING MOHAMMED ELSAKAAN DISTRIBUTION AHMAD BINO

THE ORGINAL PICTURE OF THE EARTH ROUNDABOUT IN JEDDAH BEING BUILT www. EXPATJEDDAH.com

Thank you for all the supporters Abdulrahraman Attar , Shahenaz Sabban, Nailah Attar , Shahd Attar , Anwar Idriss, Talal Zahid, Nadia Alzuhair, Nawaf Alnassar , Mohammed Hafiz, Sara Batterjee , and you......

This issue has a special place in my heart, From the first day I understood the meaning of art and design I became infatuated, I find it in everything around me and enjoy seeing it in godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s creations and artistic minds. I am Always Attracted to the concepts behind the artworks and the feeling it leaves in me. This Issue I dedicate to the initiative that seeks to create a breathing room for each artist, collector and appreciator of art, the 21.39 jeddah arts initiative of the Saudi Art Council. Whenever I attended an Art scene of another country I crave to find such cultural energy in our country, thus I thank the Saudi Art Council for raising the bar and putting Jeddah on the World art map. The 43rd issue of design covers the third edition of 21,39 which is a humble attempt to show my Gratitude and spread the values behind the effort to all art lovers.

‫الربنامج‬

P.63

THE PROGRAM

‫ القامئني‬P.49

THE SAUDI ART COUNCIL

P.35 THE ARTWORK

‫ الفنانني‬P.17 ARTISTS

P.75

messika.com

Collection Angel

‫محمد حافظ‬

MOHAMMED HAFIZ

INTRO FROM VICE PRESIDENT SAUDI ART COUNCIL We welcome you for to the third edition of 21.39 jeddah arts, four years after the founding of the Saudi Art Council and a clear vision from the President of the Council, Her Royal Highness Princess Jawaher Bint Majid, that the Council will be a platform for art and culture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Several of the Council’s achievements come into this vision and goals that were assigned by the members of the council.With the support of 60 families from Jeddah, which with the blessing of God helped in the launch of the first edition of 21.39 initiative which is an integrated collective effort by the 16 members of the Saudi Art Council. The Council has in the brief period hosted six events and launched Rubat alKhonji as the first cultural center in the heart of Jeddah’s historic addition to supporting more than 30 exhibitions and create the opportunity for more than 300 artists to exhibit their work, all of this comes to flow to the main initiative of the Council which is the educational initiative, that attracted more than 50,000 students and has coordinated more than 100 workshops. The Council’s objectives and initiatives focused on creating an art scene and set up opportunities for Saudis and artists to develop their careers and enrich the art scene and focus on cultural exchange between the viewer and the artist. Our belief is in the importance of artistic debate, which reflects on the progress of people and enriching the cultural values and pride in their roots and history.

21.39 jeddah arts is the most important art event in the calendar of the Council which is aimed at local and international community, all ages, educational backgrounds , classes and aims to involve art and debate in all segments of society. It has been coordinating the event to meet these purposes. The program includes visitors from school trips to the general society to visit the exhibitions. We have seen in a short period a positive reaction to the artistic movement to the Program of Seminars, workshops aimed at those interested and specialists , people of expertise and professionals in the world of art, to teach topics we choose carefully and answer the most important questions in our society in terms of artistic movement. I invite you to come with us and enjoy the programs that we prepared carefully for you .

EDITION

ART HAS NEW PLACE “21-39” is a non-profit initiative organized by the Saudi Art Council, a group of local art enthusiasts who wish to contribute to the local community through the promotion of art and culture in Jeddah. Illustrating the geographic coordinates of the city (21.5433°N, 39.1728°E), “21-39” seeks to maintain and develop the phenomenon that has, for decades, seen Jeddah at the forefront of Saudi Arabia’s contemporary art scene. The program will include curated exhibitions, gallery openings, workshops and a series of talks and discussions that aim to build bridges with the outside world through the universal language of art.Of equal importance, “21-39” presents Saudis with an opportunity to view and appreciate the artistic culture that exists and is developing in their homeland. By organizing an annual city-wide initiative encompassing a range of events, partners and locations, “21-39” offers an unforgettable journey into this historic city.

EARTH & EVER AFTER Earth is the collective memory that is bound to our subconscious. She is a reflection of our selves, manifesting herself as a constant flow of images that teem with scent, taste and colour. The Creator revealed in his holy book; “From this dust We created you, and in this We shall put you back, and from this, We shall raise you up once again” (20,55) and so the Earth is a gift from God, as an abode and a base from which to spring forth into existence, and from there, into the unknown realm of possibility; “And Allah has made the Earth a spread for you, So that you may go about its broad ways” (71,20) As we regard the Earth as a living, breathing being, so she regards us as well, monitoring the tread of humanity upon her surface and how it marks her. She sends us signs in the guise of ecosystems that have begun to disappear as a result of our greed, and omens that reveal how far we have strayed from our humanity. Despite this, the Earth is giving and remains a place of abundance. Above all, she has bestowed upon us infinite beauty that can be seen everywhere; in the delicate spread of a dove’s wings; the transparency of a drop of water; the shimmer of colour on the back of a butterfly; the warm yellow of sandy desert dunes; the colour blue that draws its depth from the sea and its breadth from the sky; and how all of the above and beauty beyond can be perceived in the loving gaze of another. This exhibition invites you to reflect on humanity’s relationship with the Earth, to explore whether it is reconciled with their own personal bond and how an artist’s environment is inextricably bound to his sense of identity and roots. We invite you to the opening of ‹Earth and Ever After›, so that together, we may rediscover ourselves...

As I fiercely love all living creatures on this planet, I respect the differences between them Because I believe that the purity and sparkle of a dew drop is no less beautiful than a raging river. ‫ شاعر صيني‬// ‫  تشيدي ماتسشيا‬

“As I fiercely love all living creatures on this planet, I respect the differences between them Because I believe that the purity and sparkle of a dew drop is no less beautiful than a raging river.” Jidi Majia, Chinese Poet

written by //ESRAA EMAD

Homegrown Market is a unique boutique popup store and platform for creative talents in the Middle East. Designed to showcase this talent , working as a support, providing designers and

//‫بدويّة‬ Badawiah

budding creatives an interactive platform to turn to the junction of shopping local and regional desigers . In conjunction with the launch of the activities of the Saudi Art Council 21.39 third edition, homegrown market celebrated the second showcase to join together in this event, where homegrown market founder Tamara Abu Khadra tells Design : “Our products that will be to be exhibited during the exhibition «Earth and, ever after» will be inspired by mother nature, environmentally friendly materials , and we will be using recycled materials such as fabrics and products ranging from small gifts, laptops, coffee cups, bracelets, kaftans, jackets household goods.

Green Bar// Fyunka // ‫فيونكة‬

‫ الفنانني‬18 ARTISTS

Elegance is an attitude Kate Winslet

Conquest Classic

www.longines.com

ARTISTS 21,39

OLA HEJAZI

‫ الفنانني‬20

ARTISTS

Written by : ESRA EMAD

Since the beginning of time, man is in a constant conflict, be it between good and evil, love and war…etc. It is an unavoidable cycle; whenever we reach the end, we return to the same beginning. Nothing is constant except for the fact that man is succeeded by man. Ages have passed, leaving us with stories for today; legends written in cave walls saying, “Man is Earth, and Earth cannot grow without good.” How numerous are the books and technology mediams which have dominated the world; man has coexisted with them but yet, compassion remains inside him only for his land’s soil, and for a fellow human being similar to himself, who has the same soul. Nothing changes except the external form of life. Electrical gadgets control us, but they all carry a message, or a symbol of a human being which has crossed this path of life and imprinted his existence on the walls of time.’ This was artist Ola Hejazi’s concept, “Life and Existence”, which will be featured in the exhibition. She mentioned, ‘My participation with 21,39 has made me sprout out of the soil of my being, and to blossom this project from the colors of my soul to what is beyond earthly.

SADDEK WASIL

written by : mashael alamri

Participating for the third time is fellow artist Saddek WasIl. After participating in the “Moallaqat” Exhibition, which resulted in his work, “Rapid Progress”, to be displayed in Al Balad, he worked on a giant sculpture in the main event and in Tasami gallery. Saddik says, ‘This year, my participation in “Earth and Ever After” differs than my previous projects. This year’s sculpture is a 2x2x3 meter high sculpture of empty shopping market baskets. This sculpture is about the main objective of the exhibition.’ He expressed his awe of this participation, since its concept is tied to the Earth, and added, “An artist’s contribution is shown in the efforts directed to Planet Earth, and I tried to make my work this year stand out from my previous projects, and I represent it proudly, for it is a reflection of what I have to offer to this Earth.” Wasil considers 21,39 to be one of the most important artistic events in the city of Jeddah- which he envisions to be the city of art and beauty, adding, “This initiative seeks to support artists and their development, and helps them gain numerous experiences, in addition to accelerating the movement of the development of art. The Saudi Art Council has started three years ago in an important journey to spread artistic awareness.”

SAMI ALTURKI

Written by : ESRA EMAD

Sami Alturki’s opinion on 21,39 was, ‘It is a large event which provides an overview of art in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It provides wonderful opportunities for local artists, and places Jeddah on the art map as a link of communication for the artists of the Middle East, and strengthening the role of Jeddah as a city which uses 21,39 as a network for local talent. Other Arabian cities recognize foreign artists whereas Jeddah focuses on highlighting local talent, in order to promote its art scene in an important event such as 21,39.

‫ الفنانني‬22 ARTISTS

I’m so glad to be back to the Saudi art scene, and for our art to regain its life and viability. The fact that our artwork is to be displayed side by side with younger artists’ work is a bold and strong step.

ABDULLAH HAMMAS written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

Abdullah talks about his third time participating, saying that it is a “great initiative”. He adds, “Whoever is familiar with Her Royal Highness Jawaher Bint Majed would respectfully stand behind her and the Saudi Art Council.” Hammas states that the artist who does not have the stamina to participate with HRH Jawaher, it is better for them to keep their distance because she wants the best for her Kingdom and its citizens. So in Hammas’ opinion, if what the artist has to offer does not meet HRH’s high standards (be it inside the Kingdom or abroad), then he/ she does not deserve any attention. Hammas talked about his participation, stating, “I have prepared two projects. Mural. Each piece is 3x2 meters, represents our environment, made by acrylic on canvas, and created in my signature abstract symbolic style.

MADIHA ALAJROUSH written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

As for the competent artist Madiha Alajaroush, who is part of the earlier generations of Saudi artists, she has expressed her utmost happiness to participate in the exhibition 21,39. 11 of her pieces were chosen to be displayed on the days of the exhibition. She has told Design, “We were depreciated for a while, and I’m so glad to be back to the Saudi art scene, and for our art to regain its life and viability. The fact that our artwork is to be displayed side by side with younger artists’ work is a bold and strong step.

RASHID ASLSHASHAI

written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

Artist Rashid Alshashaei sees that the purpose of 21,39 this year is different and he expects different propositions, especially that it is the third time around. He says, “We have begun to pick the fruits of this initiative with a good approach, and the coordinators for this year’s exhibition, Hamza Serafi and Mona Khazindar, have a long history in this field and the initial tactics to see it through success, stating, “This year is promising inshAllah and we hope that the exhibition achieves its objectives. We assure that Jeddah, with this 21,39 initiative, is capable of raising the standard of exhibitions built technically and intellectually, and to practice and surpass the international standards in the art field. We have reached a distinct stage of maturity and have received great, deep interactions from people this year. This year, Alshashaei participated by creating a piece made of different medias. It is an unlikely approach from his sequence of previous work, in order to bring back the idea of a childhood which calls for thinking, reflecting, discovering, in an honest, instinctive, and fun way, stating, “My idea for this project is derived from the childhood experience of my kids; they love to play and interact with mirrors, taking photos of them and of themselves through them. I found my inspiration within that sight – to deflect the stereotypical image of the environment, our lives, worries and problems.

GHADAH ALRABEAI Artist Ghadah Alrabea, who participated with her piece, “Aya Tobia”, in the Earth and Ever After exhibition said, “Every year we wait for this event as if it’s a beautiful art wedding festival which only comes once a year, leaving us waiting eagerly with passion and longing for it to come so that we showcase our evolved artwork and the progressiveness that the Saudi art has gained in the past year. 21,39 is the wedding of art for the bride of the Red Sea: Jeddah. So congratulations Jeddah, for this beauty; congratulations to us artists for this wonderful initiative. I would like to thank all those who contributed in the completion of this fantastic event, 21,39, and con-

‫ الفنانني‬24

gratulations Jeddah for your upcoming wedding!” As for her work “Aya Tobia”, it consists of two projects; one using boxes and cartons of candy and chocolate, and another using tea leaves. The project focuses on a gracious city which man has been born to build and reconstruct its land. It was previously known as Utopia, as a symbol of a virtuous city of our dreams. Ghadah told Design, “In my art piece, I am calling the heart of the city to rise. I am calling the virtue which will always be present as long as we wanted and aspired to keep the pillars of Aya Tobia intact. I am trying to awaken the land from its slumber and drunkenness which is plunged towards quantity rather than quality., with staggering skyscrapers piercing the clouds, forgetting that the main objective behind the land’s infrastructure is the building themselves, building a virtue and the good of mankind so that humans prevail. Should we rest now? Sip our cups of tea after putting effort into building these cities? Get yourself a cup and drink with me so that we can watch today’s news. News time is tea time; a time when we can relax and watch the product of our efforts. I take a look and I find wars, bombs, orphans, children who lost their warm homes.. and there! Look there! The body of a dead child being washed away by waves, the same waves which wash away whatever our hands created. Now architecture has evolved. So let’s turn around, and see what changed man.

SUHA SHUMAN

ARTISTS

‫مشاعل العمري‬: ‫كتابة‬

Artist Suha Shoman, confirms that her participation in 21,39 jeddah arts earth ever after, , because of her belief that the artist is a witness of time, and the reality of what is happening in Gaza should appear for all, she says, «because I felt that the news of terrorism accounted for all sites and news feeds everywhere, if the world forgets the Palestinian cause.” Schuman’s film documents the state terrorism and the legitimate rights of the loss suffered by the Palestinians in 70 years. She says about her work «Biaratna (farm)»: «The film tells the story of my grandfather orchard planted in 1929, and generation after generation, we continued growing Orange there, but the occupation forces stormed several times since 2002, and uprooted 628 thousand and 982 tree, as All groves raided Beit Hanoun crossing between tragedy and personal tragedy of every Palestinian living under occupation.”

BOUTROUS ALMAREI

‫مشاعل العمري‬: ‫كتابة‬ Everyone working in the creative field seeks to connect with the world through his production. In the opinion of artist Putrous Almarei, it does not necessarily mean that the artist should do the work aesthetically; but that it is important to express himself through it, stating, “I am interested in reaching out to the Arabian audience because I am of them and my work speaks to them more than it does to the West, and this type of exhibition, which is based on thoughtful organization, is an opportunity for everyone to participate to reach the public which is interested in places that are not normally exhibited. The outcome is always a cultural event sheering away from materialistic marketing of art pieces, and this is what gives art a new horizon.”

To talk about the idea that his work which shines on his personal longing to AlSham, Putrous indicates that his portrait was created by using black and white liquid acrylic on canvas, which is always the first option for him. He has a compassion for the art of drilling, which he learned in the College of Fine Arts in Damascus, but finds it difficult to work on it now. He adds, “In the beginning, I started writing names of lanes, streets, historic buildings, shops, libraries, gas stations, yards, markets, and also the names of known dishes in AlSham. After that, I moved on to writing the names of the small towns in Damascus, and tried to write down everything, including the men who passed by Syria (whether they left a positive or negative mark) and the vocabulary of slang the people of AlSham used.” He indicates that the painting wasn’t entirely documented authenticly, and stated that authenticity exists in AlTari books.

DANA AWARTANI

ZAHRAH

written by //ESRAA EMAD

ALGHAMDI For artists like Zahrah AlGhamdi, 21,39 has offered the vast artistic arena and social knowledge of art and culture. It offers a selection of local and international artists who are looking to highlight their visions and innovative ideas to the public eye. This initiative has helped Zahrah in developing her artistic vision through art and visual culture and to deliver the messages and views of art institutions and significant galleries of local artists to the world. About her artwork, AlGhamdi says, “I worked on a sculpture which represents what a section of the Earth would look like under a microscope, revealing the concept of the land. Is the Earth simply made of rocks? Stones? Mountains? Sand? Or does it hold its own consistence? Can the Earth’s consistence be described by the naked eye? My work isn’t a replica of the realistic world, but is an idea in the form of artistic gestures through different techniques and materials.

‫ الفنانني‬26 ARTISTS

TALAL ALTUKHAIS & MOHAMMED HAIDER written by //ESRAA EMAD

Talal Altukahis says that 21,39 is a beautiful initiative for the dissemination of art awareness in society and is a professional way to deliver Saudi art in order to reach the international status it deserves. Talal has succeeded in the previous art seasons by gaining the attention of many art museums, art collectors and art fanatics around the world. “It is a promising start for the future of the Saudi arts,” Talal says. “My participation and presence in this year’s 21,39 initiative is considered an important factor which adds up to my artistic career.” Talal’s co-artist, Mohammed Haider, who is participating by exhibiting a map of the world, states that 21,39 is one of the most important initiatives, especially with their latest exhibition, titled “Earth and Ever After”, since it’s about the Earth, which will grab everybody’s interest. He says, ‘My participation in 21,39 is important to me and will be of value to my artistic experience and career.” Haider’s contribution to the exhibition is a 244x480 map of the world showing a collection of tents representing refugees, where Haider asks through his work, “Will we continue these wars and this greed? Turning the world into a collection of tents?”

Dana Awartani is one of the most prominent artists in Saudi Arabia who uses the art of gilding. She contributed to 21,39 by gilding the Holy Quran. The main material she uses to decorate her work is gold, since that color is of a holy character and somewhat symbolizes divine light, as evidenced by its presence in most Islamic art pieces. Therefore, Awartani prefers to utilize this element in most of her work; not only for its symbolic value, but because she prepares this golden media in the traditional method, which requires plenty of time and attention. Additionally, in her point of view, it gives her artwork more significance and depth. Dana told Design, “The process starts first by purchasing golden paper made of pure gold which was originally sliced into fine sheets. Then I grind the gold and integrate drops of Arabian glue into it for a few hours until it becomes an extremely smooth paste. The process doesn’t end here. I still have to refine that paste with clean water to make sure of its full purity. I then wait for the water to evaporate, then add a certain substance to convert it to paint. The whole process takes several days of work, just so that the material is ready to use!”

DALAL ALJAROUDI

written by //ESRAA EMAD

Artist Dalal Aljaroudi happily states, “21,39 is a beautiful initiative and I am happy with my participation among a selection of great artists, because they themselves are fun to be around. This will also add value to my artwork credit.” Dalal Aljaroudi established her personal paper exhibition – 1) in the Arts Club Lounge of Qatif, and 2) in Nesma Art Gallery of Jeddah, in addition to her participation in numerous galleries and social events in the Kingdom, including the Eastern Province, Riyadh, and Jeddah. She has received several certificates and shields of appreciation, and her work has been recognized by important figures, banks, and businessmen and women.

‫ الفنانني‬28 ARTISTS

Saeed Gamhawi Saeed Gamhawi is a member of the Fine Artists House in Jeddah, and the Saudi Society for Culture. Solo exhibitions include his first exhibition in 1998 and second exhibition at Jeddah Atelier for Fine Arts 2003. He has participated in international group shows such as Saudi Cultural Week exhibition in Italy, Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates ; The Saudi Contemporary Art exhibition, Cairo 2001 and Ten Saudi Artists Exhibition, Syria 2000.Gamhawi also participated in local events such as «The Palestinian Intifada», Riyadh; The Youth Welfare exhibitions since1991; group exhibition «Badrat Al Arous» 2001; Baha›s Tourism Fair 2000. His work is housed in private and private collections including The Youth Welfare, Abdel Raouf Khalil Museum, Crafts House (Artizana), some businessmen and King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Jeddah. He received the first prize at the Regions Exhibition in 1997, and several certificates of merit from the General Presidency of Youth Welfare, the Ministry of Education and from some art galleries.

Zaman JASSIM Zaman Jassim was born in 1971 in Al-Khobar in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In 1989 he received his Diploma from the Art Institute in Riyadh. He is a member of the Bahrain Art Society and the Qatif Artists Group. He has participated in group exhibitions in the Arab World, North Africa, Europe, India and Taiwan. His work is in the collections of the Al Mansouria Foundation, the Kinda Foundation, the Barjeel Foundation, the League of Arab States, Emaar International and the Saudi Aramco Company. He evokes earthy colours into a unique expression through mixed media. His style is heavily textured with unusual forms; rectangles, cones and some that look like appliqué works on the wall. His work is enriched with symbols, tattoos, patterns and calligraphy and narrates a simultaneously stark and rich visual story. His hollow beams and bent plates seem aligned in space to create a harmonious panoply of substance.

Nasser Al-Salem

Nasser Al-Salem was born in the Holy City of Mecca. He became interested in calligraphy from an early age. Nasser Al-Salem’s work is essentially the Arabic written word, therefore he is first and foremost a calligrapher. His practice pushes the boundaries of this age-old Islamic art by reinventing it in non-conventional mixed media forms and by exploring its conceptual potential.

He participated in the British Museum’s Journey To The Heart of Islam: Hajj Exhibition [2012], where not shortly after, his work “Zamzam” was acquired by the museum. Nasser has participated in the Echoes exhibition at the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City [2013] and Calligraffiti at Leila Heller Gallery in New York [2013] Nasser›s work is in the collection of several museums including The British Museum, LACMA, and Centre Pompidou, Paris.

MOHAMMED ABDELRASOUL

‫ الفنانني‬30 ARTISTS

MOHAMMED ABDELRASOUL was born in 1979 in the Kordofan region of Sudan and moved with his family to live in Khartoum in 1985, where he completed his studies. The artist started drawing at the very early age of five years old, before even learning how to read and write. He was always drawn to nature and its natural forms and shapes for inspiration. In 1998 he completed high school and took courses in drawing and painting in the Palace of Youth in Omdurman, and completed his undergraduate studies with honors in 2004 from the Sudan University of Fine Arts. Mohammed has presented two solo-exhibitions in Khartoum, Sudan: Rashid Diab Arts Centre [2013] and Gallery Mojo [2012]. He has participated in many group exhibitions throughout Sudan including a group exhibition at the Sudanese National Museum[2007]. The British Council, Khartoum [2008], The French Cultural Center [2010], German Cultural Center, Khartoum [2010].

MOHAMMED ALGHAMDI

Image credit is photograph by Sage Sohier

MANAL ALDOWAYAN Embracing diverse media, Manal AlDowayan›s work encompasses black and white photography, sculpture, video, sound, neon and large-scale participatory installations. Her artistic practice revolves around themes of active forgetting, archives, and collective memory, with a large focus on the state of Saudi women and their representation. She has documented social groups like the oil men and women of Saudi Arabia in her project, If I Forget You Don›t Forget Me, and has addressed the impact of mass media on propagating intentional erasing of identities in her project Crash, highlighting the unnamed Saudi teachers dying in car crashes across Saudi Arabia. Her participatory projects have attracted hundreds of women to use art as a new platform to address social injustice like Tree of Guardians, Esmi-My Name, and Suspended Together. In 2014 she was a recipient of a research Fellowship from NYU AD and was invited in early 2015 to the Robert Rauschenberg Residency in Captiva, Florida. Manal has shown her work in Prospect 3 New Orleans - The American Biennale (2014/15), in collateral shows at the Venice Biennale (2009/11), and at Museums around the world like Gawngju Museum in South Korea, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark, The Victoria and Albert Museum in UK, and Mathaf Museum of Modern Arab Art in Qatar. Her art works are part of public collection at the British Museum, LA County Museum, Louisiana Museum, and Mathaf. Manal holds a Master›s Degree in Systems Analysis and Design and currently lives and works between her native Dhahran, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, UAE.

written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

Majid Altuhbaiti

written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

The artist Majid Althubaiti considers his first participation in 21.39 is very inspiring, a great motivation to continue to provide artwork and new experiences initiated several years ago, to talk about the initiative Althbaiti confirms that the hope and aspirations have significance. « the initiative has strength andsocial and cultural participation through art, and has specialists in the arts and influential supporters locally and regionally. For «the Earth and ever after », Althbyta explains: «there is difficulty to provide artworks to specific topics of intiatives and usually it doesnt work. . But the best is always important in these titles be general and can accommodate all views, ideas such as «the Earth and beyond it», and not to be specific and narrow, so it suit a greater number of experiments and artworks ». .

Artist Mohammed Al-Ghamdi says: «the meaning of 21.39 is the latitude and longitude of the city of Jeddah. This initiative embodied its values ..it Jeddah on the map of the art world. for art lovers to visit from all countries on this date every year, which is critical. To talk about his participation, Al-Ghamdi said: «My participation is a tree of life .... They express my texts and visual concepts for the title of the exhibition (the earth and there after)».

‫ الفنانني‬32 ARTISTS

Mona Hatoum

MAHA MALLUH

Mona Hatoum was born into a Palestinian family in Beirut in 1952 and since 1975 has lived and worked in London. She originally went to England on a visit and stayed on when the outbreak of the civil war in Lebanon prevented her returning. After studying at the Byam Shaw and the Slade School of Art in London, Hatoum first became widely known in the mid 80s for a series of performance and video works that focused with great intensity on the body. Since the beginning of the ‹90s her work moved increasingly towards large-scale installation works that aim to engage the viewer in conflicting emotions of desire and revulsion, fear and fascination. Hatoum has developed a language in which familiar, domestic everyday objects like chairs, beds, cots and kitchen utensils are often transformed into foreign, threatening and sometimes dangerous objects. Even the human body is rendered unfamiliar in ‹Corps étranger› (1994), a video installation that displays an endoscopic journey through the interior landscape of her own body.

A Riyadh-based artist, Maha Malluh is greatly influenced by her spiritual connection to the historic region of Najd, with its strong religious and cultural heritage, colourful patterend fabrics, and old Najdi architecture, all elements that greatly influence her art. Her artworks examine the emblematic and cultural symbols of Saudi Arabian civilization. She has always been inspired by her country, which she defines as a land of contrasting images and ideas. Her early work used traditional canvas, on which she created collages, using local fabrics and photographic images of traditional buildings.

Mona Hatoum_Portrait by Johnnie Shand-Kydd Images courtesy of GALLERIACONTINUA

Hans Op de Beeck Hans Op de Beeck (be) produces large installations, sculptures, films, drawings, paintings, photographs and texts. His work is a reflection on our complex society and the universal questions of meaning and mortality that resonate within it. He regards man as a being who stages the world around him in a tragi-comic way. Above all, Op de Beeck is keen to stimulate the viewers’ senses, and invite them to really experience the image. He seeks to create a form of visual fiction that delivers a moment of wonder, silence and introspection. Hans Op de Beeck was born in Turnhout in 1969. He lives and works in Brussels and Gooik, Belgium. Op de Beeck has shown his work extensively in solo and group exhibitions around the world.

Giovanni Ozzola

Images courtesy of GALLERIACONTINUA

Fog or sunlight streaming through colorful curtains is just one of the light effects at the core of the artist Giovanni Ozzola’s oeuvre. Working mostly in photography and, more recently, video, Ozzola produces picturesque images that oscillate between the immediacy of capturing the ephemeral and the carefully constructed artifice traditionally associated with painting—all while evoking the five senses. In his three-dimensional practice, Ozzola looks at some of these same properties by using a variety of materials: neon lights to illuminate found objects from within, marble installations as backdrops for video projects, or slate slabs as surfaces for etching. Photographer christophe vander eecken

Images courtesy of GALLERIACONTINUA

‘We need art more than even in Saudi Arabia, because life has become more hectic now. People forget about things like watching the sunset. They don’t look at nature the way they once did. Art works against this in the sense that it forces you to pause, to contemplate and think harder about your surroundings’ (Maha Malluh) Maha’s most recent work include mixed media installations, which use found objects that can be seen as historic symbols of collective Saudi identity, amongst them are massive chinco dishes, cassette tapes of religious lectures, discarded oil barrels and metal doors typical of the region; ‘When an object can no longer operate as was originally intended, a new function through adaptice re-use can be the only way to preserve the heritage of its significance’ (Maha Malluh)

‫ الفنانني‬34

ARTISTS

LORIS CECCHINI

Pascale

Images courtesy of GALLERIACONTINUA

ETEL ADNAN Born in Beirut in 1925 to a Syrian Muslim father and a Greek Christian mother, Adnan grew up among the landscapes of Lebanon and Syria before moving to France for a time, and then to the majestic plains of America. The works of Adnan are part of many private collections and museums around the world such as the Royal Jordanian Museum, Tunis Museum of Modern Art, Sursock Museum in Beirut, Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, the British Museum in London, the World Bank Collection and the National Museum for Women in the Arts in Washington DC to name a few. In 2010, the artist participated in the «Memory Marathon» at the Serpentine Gallery in London. Poet, short story writer, essayist, and artist, Etel Adnan is a major figure in contemporary culture. Considered one of the most important representatives of the Arab intellectual diaspora, Adnan is also a pioneer of women’s rights. Her first paintings date from 1958, the year she moved to the San Francisco of Ginsberg, Kerouac, and Snyder in order to teach philosophy at the University of California. Deeply in love with nature and its original symbiosis with our existence, Adnan exhibited landscapes without human figures for her participation in dOCUMENTA (13). Seeking to represent only the physical beauty of the universe and the intense bond of love she has with it, the artist executed her paintings with clear, confident strokes. The colors scarcely nuance one another such that it seems they have always been present. Adnan asks, “Do colors have the power to break the Time barrier, and carry us into outer spaces, not only those made of miles and distances, but those of the accumulated experiences of life since its beginning or unbeginning?”

Marthine Tayou Pascale Marthine Tayou was born in Yaoundé (Cameroon) in 1967.He began his career as an artist in the 90s, when he changed his name, taking a double name in the female form: Pascal(e) Marthin(e).Exhibitions in Cameroon were soon followed by shows in Germany, France and Belgium, the country where he currently lives. Tayou’s practice is characterized by its variability, since he confines himself in his artistic work neither to one medium nor to a particular set of issues. While his themes may be various, they all use the artist himself as a person as their point of departure. Already at the very outset of his career, Pascale Marthine Tayou added an “e” to his first and middle name to give them a feminine ending, thus distancing himself ironically from the importance of artistic authorship and male/female ascriptions. His works not only mediate in this sense between cultures, or set man and nature in ambivalent relations to each other, but are produced in the knowledge that they are social, cultural, or political constructions. His work is deliberately mobile, elusive of pre-established schema, heterogeneous. It is always closely linked to the idea of travel and of coming into contact with what is other to self, and is so spontaneous that it almost seems casual. The objects, sculptures, installations, drawings and videos produced by Tayou have a recurrent feature in common: they dwell upon an individual moving through the world and exploring the issue of the global village. Tayou has contributed to a number of major international exhibitions and art events,

In the work of Loris Cecchini. The subjects that appear in his work include multiple collages and detailed architectural models, objects in rubber, reinvented caravans and tree houses, structurally distorted spaces, and prismatic, transparent covers and surfaces. The variety and morphology of the elements constantly interrelate in a continuous alternating process of deconstruction and reconstruction located in the interchange between the physical reality of the materials and a virtualized presence. In both his photographs and his sculptures, the revision of a wide-ranging notion of the ‘model’ involves the reworking of familiar forms from our everyday lives, which are transferred into an altered vision that challenges the viewer’s perceptions. Using subtle digital processing methods, the artist superimposes snatches of reality onto physical/virtual scenarios constructed by means of studio models, creating various situations that lie somewhere between the plausible and the paradoxical.

Images courtesy of GALLERIACONTINUA

THE ARTWORK

Earth being a planet, and the Earth which they live on, that carried memories of their predecessors, and adds, “We are in dire need of initiatives such as 21,39, for it will leave an inevitable mark on the Saudi art scene, including the artists and visitors of the exhibition. As a member of the Saudi Art Council, and curator of the exhibition, Hamza Serafi said, “There is not enough space which we are able to talk about everything that is worth talking about in a deep manner. Planet Earth is an example. So we decided to identify the major topics in which we can cover as many is-

ART EXPRESSES EARTH

Saeed Gamhawi A Virtual Memory, 2015 Clay paint on Canvas 300 x 100 cm

written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

sues as possible in four main sections.” The exhibition starts from the section entitled “Earth as a Human Legacy”, because our region contains traces of prehistoric man in the form of cave paintings. The section starts with Madiha Al Ayharosh, who has a study in it, which and who will demonstrate her own philosophy through her work, in addition to the works of Ola Hejazi, who used drawings of cave people as imagined by her simple and different point of view. Serafi describes Hejazi’s work, saying, “It displays pieces which diminishes our humanitarian roles. Is the caveman still inside us?” The exhibition then brings us then to the Southern District, which includes the presentation of the art of “Cat”, that originates in the southern region and represents humane spontaneous art, which man had picked out directly from nature without any external influence. Serafi describes it, saying, “It is a collection of projects which were made by a group of women who have

One word of multiple dimensions; when we say “Earth”, we mean place

a leader to guide them. They apply her instructions. There is

and time simultaneously, in an extended story from the beginning to the

dialogue in this field of work.” Ali Maghawri has contributed to

ever after. In its third year round, 21,39 is holding the new, profound title:

the research in the South and his wife, Fatima, has a museum

“Earth and Ever After”, curated by both Mona Khazindar and Hamza Serafi.

which preserves the heritage of the South, trying to decipher

The journey takes the visitor through the exhibition’s corridors, starting with

a symbolic section of inscriptions to reach a further goal than

“Earth as a Human Legacy”, passing through “Maps”, and “Our Beautiful

just for the sake of frilly artwork, but to illustrate the idea that ex-

Land” to finally finish in “The ever after ”. It is a journey which evokes brains

pressive work, social life, celebrations, and daily events, which

to think and conclude; which is the very nature of art. Mona Khazindar, the Saudi Art Council member and exhibition coordinator, explained that the exhibition aims to provide an opportunity for the participating artists, to express their artistic vision in a general manner toward the

Madeha Al Ajroush Faces of Saudi Arabia Photography on Paper

‫الأرض‬ ‫كإرث‬ ‫إنساني‬

are covered in most studies, are not frilly acts, rather than humanitarian

THE ARTWORK

actions. The exhibition presents the developments of this art until it reaches to the artist Abdullah Hamas, who was capable of conveying his projects in an abstract manner. The section ends with the work of Professor Manal Al Dowayan, and it is a teamwork effort, made by the makers Sadu, as one of the heritage artifacts we have locally in the Kingdom and has shed light on the idea of preserving the heritage, and Serafi says, «It is not necessarily that the result of our efforts to preserve heritage becomes persistent, but if wwe don’t take action, it may lead to extinction. Therefore, Manal’s work expresses this idea, which is a calling to re-examine the way we deal with the popular traditional artifacts of our heritage and a method to develop and integrate heritage with our daily humane needs. “Labor has many dimensions and this is an important study in the redevelopment of a heritage.”

Mohammed Haider TENTS

MAPS SECTIONS It begins with a video by Suha Shoman. It speaks of the “disarmament of land”, and our main issue in the Middle East, settlement. It shows the brutal-

Mona Hatoum Courtesy of Tamer & Alireza collection

It is communicates the idea that the world’s issues are hanging on pause including the issue of Palestine.” HAMZA SEIRAFI CURATOR AND MEMBER OF SAUDI ART COUNCIL

ity of settlement in two ways, Mona Khathom’s work refers to the Palestinian issue, and Serafi says, “It is communicates the idea that the world’s issues are on pause, including the issue of Palestine.” This leads to work created by Etel Adnan, who draws the surface of the planet in an aesthetic manner. Serafi explains the idea of exhibiting two opposing forces, “We wanted to put a beautiful vision contrasted with human violence, we have many pieces of maps of certain Arab countries which have suffered recently from numerous events. These opposing projects are symbolic of the cities of the world.” The visitor then moves on to the work of the artist Mohammed Haider, who offers a map of the world made of tents which are symbolic to the issue of refugees, and that the whole world

THE ARTWORK

40 â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are in dire need of initiatives such as 21,39, for it will leave an inevitable mark on the Saudi art scene, including the artists and visitors of the exhibition. Mona Khazindar CURATOR AND MEMBER OF SAUDI ART COUNCIL

THE ARTWORK

And finally .. Ever After An imaginary study, we often wonder what is life between our planet between now and the Day of Resurrection? Or the end? In its infancy, the work of the artist Nasser Al Salem, which is a Quranic verse: {The Earth shall shine with the light of its Lord} - 39:69. Then comes the work of artists Mahdi Aljeraidi HANS OP DE BEECK Before the Rain (photo), 2014 Lambda print on Dibond, wooden frame x 57 x 4 cm 156 On Loan from Gallery Continua, Italy

and Muhammed AbdulRasool. They worked on creating models of the eleven planets. Then comes the work of Sami Al Turki, who cre-

is turning into a shelter because of what humans are doing. Then comes a display of Sedik Wasel’s artwork, which is a model of shopping carts talking about consumption and about creating a pyramid different than the pyramid we’re familiar with, about human needs. « The section of symbolic work ends with Ghadah Alrabea’s project ,

ated a model of the Burzukh (isthmus) which displays life between heaven and earth, of searching for a home for those who did not find their home on Earth. . He expressed and created forms floating houses.

which is called “Candy Cities”. Serafi descries, “She used candy wrappers in her artistic production with an eagle eye perspective of some cities made of candy. “She placed beside it another canvas which as covered in tea bags, for they represent a network of strings, which is a highly symbolic.”

Sami Al Turki Barzakh, 2012

Our Beautiful Land” section After all these antonyms displayed in the Maps section, “Our Beautiful Land” section comes up next. The section tried to show aspects of the beauty of our planet to convey a message that we can be save the earth, for it is everyone’s home.

Photography realized as a Model

written by //ESRAA EMAD

OUR JEDDAH

THE ARTWORK

An artist’s artistic thoughts spin around the ideas of belonging, identity, the world, and globalization. These ideas are focused on making the contemporary human being understand his identity and his curiosity for where he belongs. This artist’s thoughts always carry a profound sense such as the idea of identity, which has recently embodied a project, “Our Jeddah” or “Jeddatna”, which will gather participants in the form of a workshop in the initiative activities of 21,39. Artist Ayman Yosri, who is from the 90s generation of art; and whoever follows his works will feel the nature of his contemporary art that hasn’t changed since his first solo exhibition in 1991 with the name “The Mirror”. Passing through his personal expositions and his works, each project carries a distinctive trait all the way to his current creations, each generation is depicted by the nature of his own style, and his belief that the artist is an evolving being that doesn’t follow a style in art.

Design met the artist Ayman Yosri in order to have an interesting dialogue about the idea of identity and belonging, in his project, “Our Jeddah”, and to get to know his perceptions of the art scene in the city of Jeddah.

How did this difference inspire you to produce art? What is your philosophy on choosing soil? Why “Our Jeddah”? What does Jeddah mean to you?

I started in 2007 with an idea about the place I live in, by working on a “zincograph” i.e. I take the na-

My Jeddah is from the house to the street to the city to the country to the whole world. I moved to Jeddah when I was 6 years old, coming from a rural village in the south, into one of Jeddah’s many main streets. I was shocked at the sudden change, from the quiet village to the busy city. I then moved to various locations around Jeddah, including districts of different environments, and I have come to grasp the versatility of the city. Each district had its own vibe and movement; the vibes of the North districts do not match the vibes of the Middle, and the South districts have a different scene. There is a huge social gap between each neighborhood of this wealthy city, each district has its own character; this makes Jeddah different than any other city in the world, for it enjoys its personal appeal and originality. It cannot be compared to anywhere else. It has its own independent identity and its population consists of cultural diversity. And indeed as the slogan implies, “Jeddah is like no other.”

ture of the place I live in, so that I express through my work that Earth (and its surface) is made up of skin. The Earth’s surface is exactly like our skins; it holds identity and color. I presented it to one of the exhibitions as a primary concept. I explained the philosophy behind it and stated why I chose the “soil” element in my work; soil reflects us. We originated from dirt i.e. soil. We are our outer skins. When someone asks “Shlonak?” i.e. “What’s your color?”, they mean to ask what the color of your skin is, which is a reflection of how someone is doing. Soil is exactly like human beings and it has its own personality; there’s red soil, sandy soil, desert soil, agricultural soil – its variety is just like the colors and nature of people. This is my perception and the simple meaning of my artwork.

THE ARTWORK Then came the work of “Our Jeddah”, which embodied the same concept. However, instead of asking people to collect soil souvenirs from far lands for me, I ask them to collect soil from places which have a sentimental meaning to them around Jeddah. Every person is to take a photo of their hand while collecting the soil from these areas which represent them; be it their homes, gardens, places which hold specific memories. Whoever submits a sample to me must have chosen the place with utmost care and with feelings connected to that soil; as if he is bringing me a piece of himself. Although the people who have brought me samples live in different areas, they all represent Jeddah. Our Jeddah. What’s beautiful about this project is that it transmits positive energy, in which the city turns into a home with its familiar character, it reflects its places by the positive impressions it left on a person, causing him to shed light on this feeling.

Tell us about the work of “Our Jeddah”. How did you come up with the idea and how did it evolve? The idea has its own personal and ancient roots. I went to the places I’ve lived in, in different stages of my life around Jeddah, and based my artwork on that. I began to take a soil sample from each region, to summarize the memories and meanings at the time of my experience through the soil samples. I mixed these soil samples in a box so that they stay with me all my life. It’s as if this soil, which is my origin primarily, expresses me, and is a physical metaphor for the years that passed; whenever I look at it, it’s as if a living being is telling my story. Suddenly this collection of soil has a meaning far from what the eye can limitedly see. Since 2007, I have been asking my friends who travel abroad to bring back souvenirs from the lands they visited around the world, so that they make the far lands seem close to me. These souvenirs are soil collections from the places they visit. They take videos and photographs with their phones (at a time when the digital revolution was a new endemic and a contemporary idea) while they collect my soil souvenir gifts to bring home to me. I used to always tell them that something would come out behind this idea, and indeed my project has risen and I’ve created works with different themes which revolve around this idea, and they have been displayed in a variety of places.

48 What is the nature of the “Our Jeddah” workshop? The workshop is part of the “Earth and Ever After” activities. It won’t be

But wouldn’t that mean that you would change the independent color of the soil? On the contrary, there are psychological aspects to places and memories. Memories have color. If a person describes the place where he grew up and his feelings towards his family by the color green, he will color the sample he took from his home garden green. Plus, coloring the soil sample is optional. Soil is best at its natural color but I am only giving the participants the choice of color if they wish to express their feelings by them, so that the final result becomes an optical piece of artwork which moves the viewers’ feelings.

In Ayman Yosri’s perspective, what distinguishes art from other fields? Art is the only field which leaves one free, for an artist is free in choosing a theme and free in his way of applying it. This freedom is unavailable in other fields of life. Therefore, art is a way of venting for the artist, his happiness lies in it. God has inspired me as a human being to create art, and to be very happy when practicing it. I try to share this happiness that I feel with others, so that someone out there can be at the same level of my happiness. But some people will experience a lesser amount of happiness, and some will reject it; this is acceptable in the field of art because an artist is aware of the diversity of tastes and cultures. Artwork doesn’t necessarily need to impress everyone, and that is what distinguishes art.

teaching a certain skill, but it is for the formation of a huge art project, in which the participants of “Our Jeddah” install soil samples (which they picked out from certain areas around Jeddah) onto a huge replica of the map of Jeddah. Every participant will feel a sense of belonging to this city and that he is made for it. The final result will resemble a piece of rubber which can be suspended anywhere for display, when in fact, it is only a collection of soil; soil which brought a big number of Jeddah residents together. Each person will know which piece of soil is theirs because they will have placed it in the same area on the map they took it from. That way, they can see what their contribution has created, see themselves in their areas and feel a part of the city, and I want them throughout this workshop to feel proud of belonging to this fine connection. And it’s not just the installation of a map as if it were a college project, but there is a passionate side to the work, a Jeddawi element. During the workshop, I will demonstrate how to stick the soil on the map and how to soften its texture in order for it to be placed on the map which is specifically divided into neighborhoods. I, as an artist, have a vision on the overall result of how the collection of samples will look like; so that I produce a flexible work of art which can be hung up like a carpet on the wall. The colors of the soil will be variable from area to area, in order to give the piece a gorgeous form. The colors will be polychromatic, and I will give a chance for people to color their soil with colors derived from nature. If a participant wanted to divide his/her soil into two parts, to color one with a natural color, and another with a color the participant favors, in order to elaborate on his/her feelings towards a place, I will provide sand colors which can be mixed with soil resulting in a new color.

THE ARTWORK

It is a non-profit organization chaired by Her Royal Highness: Princess Jawaher bing Majed bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud. And consists of members of art lovers prominent figures , gathered by a common cause seeking to contribute to the Saudi community. They joined forces to enrich the city with artistic and cultural education with this vibrant event aimed to deliver artistic awareness by providing an opportunity for the public to explore and savor the art, culture and creativity, and the members of the council are: Abdullah AlTurki, Nadia Zuhair, Basma Al-Sulaiman, Nawaf Al-Nassar, Sarah bin Laden, Issa Bogari, Faisal tamer, Mohamed Hafiz, hanan Shobokshi, Hamza Serafi, Aya Ali Reza, Sarah Ali Reza, Raneem Farsi, Mona Khazindar. From their first meeting, there was agreement on the desire to support the art. What are the backgrounds of these members? And what does art mean to each one of them?

HER ROYAL HIGHNESS PRINCESS JAWAHER BIN MAJED

world, which enriches their experience. AlMansouria was the first establishment to cultivate artistic culture, paving the way for the art movement in Saudi to reach to new heights across three axes, documentation of art experiences , building the art collec-

On a journey of intellectual pursuit through

tion, and creating international bridges for

reading books, visiting exhibitions and fol-

cultural exchange. All of this helped the art

lowing up with local and international art.

movement, energized activities and cre-

Princess Jawaher saw the need to establish

ated spaces specializing in supporting art .

AlMansouria Foundation for Culture and

When the need has risen to create a space

Creativity in 1999 in an effort to bridge the

to gather all serious bodies in this area, came

imbalance in understanding culture. «We Support creativity that does not need relations to present itself as much it needs those who believe in it and puts it in its proper humanitarian context, to show its true uniqueness and quality. We search for authentic excellence and support it, and we put the creative movement within Saudi Arabia in the world’s cultural perspective. Above all we aspire to perfection in presenting, »

‫من مجموعة رؤوس للفنان فيصل سمره‬ ‫مجموعة املنصورية‬

We Support creativity that does not need relations to present itself as much it needs those who believe in it and puts it in its proper humanitarian context, to show its true uniqueness and quality.

Hence the organization came with a ‫عمل الفنان يوسف جاها‬ ‫مجموعة املنصورية‬

team of leading art experts and specialists

Her Royal Highness Princess Jawaher bint Majid bin Abdul Aziz,

exhibitions for them at home and abroad

known as «Mother of the Saudi artists» started since the beginning

and documenting distinctive experiences in

of the eighties to collect the most important Saudi artwork, then

publications.

founded alMansouria Foundation for Culture and creativity and af-

Through the Foundation›s keenness to ex-

terward directed the future of art in Saudi Arabia through the es-

tend bridges of dialogue between different

tablishment of the Saudi Art Council which under its umbrella the

cultures, AlMansouria aquired an Atelier in

initiative 21, 39 jeddah arts was launched.

Paris the city of art to send the Saudi and

opportunity to meet artists from all over the

Art Council, which in turn was 21.39 Art Jeddah initiative as a non-profit that seeks art awareness through the opportunity for the public at home and abroad to learn about the artistic heritage in Saudi and the contemporary Saudi Art movement, to put it in the context of the global art movement . Offering exhibitions, workshops and lectures that aim to build bridges through the universal language of art. Princess Jawaher bint Majed confirmed that to enlighten and educate the younger gen-

to support the Saudi artists through creating

Arab artists for residencies to give them the

the call for the establishment of the Saudi

erations is at the heart of Saudi Art council goals and care for the development of the educational program that aims to introduce the Saudi youth to the rich culture of art stemming from their homeland and enhance their pride.

1997 ، ‫ للفنان مهدي الجريبي‬،‫الستارة الخفيفة‬ ‫مجموعة املنصورية‬

written by //ESRAA EMAD

MOHAMMED ABDULGADER HAFIZ

Mohammed Hafiz, Vice President of the Saudi Art Council is also the e CEO of AlSawani group and Co-owner of Athr gallery .He was introduced to the world of art in the nineties when he was fifteen years old, he was drawn to a painting by the artist Abdullah Hamas in the exhibition Art vision where he told design magazine «I loved his work and I felt an unruly desire to obtain one of his pieces.. I stayed thinking day and night, I did not have at that time the amount of money to buy it « so I decided to depend on myself to buy the painting, where the artist Abdullah enthusiasticly agreed with the owner of the showroom that I will pay the amount in installments with my pocket money» saying,» I remember I paid the amount at the rate of 400 riyals each end of the month for a year «and his first impression on art he said,» I do not think that there is someone who may recall the first moments meeting art, because art is around us at every moment and every place, it is part of our daily lives « Mohamed Hafez wishes to establish a museum of art in Jeddah for art to be in the place, it deserves appreciation and attention.

FAISAL FAROOK TAMER

written by //ESRAA EMAD

Faisal Tamer, board member and vice president of Tamer group.; He

written by //ESRAA EMAD

NAWAF NAHAR ALNASSAR

delved into the art journey when he became a member of the art acquisition of the National Museum of Modern Art in Paris, and his passion for art increased over the years. Art became everything for him, and his attention focused on participation and support of various art initiatives, his belief in the role of these initiatives is providing high quality opportunities for artists to exhibit, and promote art among the members of Saudi society and deliver the Saudi artist locally and internationally , He welcomed the nomination as administrator for financial matters in the Saudi Art Council. As his vision for the Saudi Art he said, «Saudi artists work receive admiration from around the world and is appreciated by many entities where they are acquired by major institutions in Europe and United States of America, so it should be a priority to present these works within Saudi society. There is still a huge potential with Saudi artists, and it will show with the opening of more galleries in Jeddah and with the increase of Art collectors

Nawaf Nahar Al-Nassar, interior designer and founder of 3n Jeddah

art for younger generations.On the reason

Interior studio, his relationship with art dates back to his studies, it is

for joining the educational program within

his primary passion, where he looks for art in all the small details re-

the Saudi Art Council he stated, «I joined the

lated to interior design, trying through his designs to revive the herit-

educational programs in the Council be-

age of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, particularly the city of Jeddah.

cause I believe that we need to complete

Nawaf Al-Nassar joined the Saudi Art Council as one of its members

the Saudi artistic movement mission in the

and as a contributor to the education department in the Council,

kingdom, and the most prominent educa-

where he contributes to preparing the educational programs within

tional programs that we do is to coordinate

the activities of 21.39 , along with the head of the educational de-

visits to schools and coordinate workshops

partment professor Sarah Ali Reza, by offering several programs for

and lectures to raise awareness among the

students including school visits, preparation of workshops, lectures

new generations on the importance of art

and provide all that is modern in the world of culture, creativity and

and creativity in our lives. «

MONA ABED KHAZINDAR ‫ إرساء عامد‬: ‫كتابة‬ Mona Abed Khazindar, was appointed general manager of Du Institute Monde Arabe (Arab World Institute) in Paris by decision of the Board of Directors in 2011, and Khazindar graduated from the Department of Comparative Literature in Paris, and then attended the University of Sorbonne and got in-depth studies degree in modern history, and assumed several important positions most notably her work as an administrator in «contemporary Arts and photography » in the museum of the «Arab world Institute» since 1986 to 2011, also worked as a cultural consultant to the President of the General Authority for Tourism and Antiquities in Saudi Arabia, and published several writings.

HAMZA SALEH SERAFI

‫ مشاعل العمري‬: ‫كتابة‬ Art for Hamza Serafi, is the science of expression in a new language, and the artwork is not limited to aesthetics, but extends to the idea, which is the foundation, which stimulates the mind of the viewer to ask questions, The stage of « the work explains itself is over « explains serafi «and become unacceptable in contemporary art.» Serafi indicates that the artist should give the keys or

And about her relationship with art she says to design magazine « Art dwells in me, it is all my life, is my passion, my education, my specialty and my work, I have worked in the field of art since the first day I was appointed in the Institute of the Arab World Institut du Monde Arabe in 1986 and until now, I did not work throughout my life in any other field away from the art and culture, I will never forget the first request from my father { may he rest in peace ) to Buy a painting for him in 1988, it was painting in oil color on canvas for Iraqi artist Dia Azzawi, which is now hanging in my bedroom in my house in Paris.

ABDULLAH KHALID ALTURKI Khalid Abdullah AlTurki, graduated from King Fahad University of Petroleum and Minerals, a bachelor›s degree in finance and then followed with a mastar from Cass Business School in London. Abdullah’s role in 21.39 jeddah art is dealing with the exhibition guests coming from abroad. Hospitality needs a lot of effort because it requires a lot of time to communicate throughout the year with museum managers, international art collectors, and art critics and so forth.

clues to the concept of the work, and for the recipient to accept the concept and see it in action and to debate with him, or to see a totally different vision, the result of a difference in culture, Hamza adds : «An artwork with various aspects of interpretation and reading is a sign of success.», Hamza Serafi, a member of Saudi Arabia›s Art

Hamza looks forward to raise from the topic «Earth

Council, curator of the last edition (earth and ever after)

and ever after» the necessary awareness to fuel the

and founder of gallery Athr , and a main supporter for

society to reflect, and draws attention to the surround-

the Art movement in Saudi-said when asked about art

ing environment, that›s why he was keen to show vari-

of 21.39 Jeddah « that the purpose of the exhibition is to

ous artists, both local from all regions of the Kingdom,

spread the culture of artistic taste in the community, and

and international from all over the world, because this

raise the the taste for beauty, because it will raise the val-

mixing and intermingling eventually leads to the ad-

ue of humanity , and added: «Learning Beauty refines the

vancement and activates the art scene. Serafi explains

community and help them to realize that thought does

that the exhibition represents the goals of the Saudi

not mean the difference but it means dialogue, creat-

Art Council, which is trying to create a kind of cultural

ing opportunities, and this leads to unity. When aware

movement, and the most prominent manifestations of

that unity means embracing diversity, and thus becomes

evolution witnessed by the movement of art over the

a source of strength for the difference». He pointed out

past five years, Serafi explains : «Raising the allowed bar

that this idea can be dropped on the global community

for expression in the last period created a healthy envi-

that we as humanity, to face all the issues that we face

ronment for the artists because the present work lead

everyday on our planet, such as the environment and

to dialogue and not for collision, and therein lies the

energy issues, and the fight against the consumption,

beauty of art for the works that are calling for dialogue

among many others.

carry aesthetic and intellectual value of continuous never-ending, and even be able to exceed the barrier of time and real-time event and can be dropped on future events ».

NADIA ASAAD ALZUHAIR

written by //ESRAA EMAD

The word «art» means life and beauty and

beautiful dresses. Since childhood she helped her mother and aunts

the sincere expression of self in the style a

in designing dresses, and studied design at the University of Punjab

person defines that suits his emotions to-

in Pakistan and then studied interior design at the University of Home

wards the universe around, it is Ms. Nadia Al

Decoration LaSalle in US, and it was during trips abroad to visit ar-

Zuhair, director of the initiative of the Saudi

cheological museums and palaces, which had a positive impact in

Art council «watani biyoni» meaning my

her attachment to art..

country through my eyes. Since her early

Zuhair began artistic journey by joining the exhibition «Ten Artists»

childhood, art was around her because of

Hall Roshan Gallery in Jeddah in 1409 with her painting, and her

her father Asaad Alzuhair « may he rest in

contribution to 21.39 was to design and implement the trophies that

peace» who was a pilot and founder of the

where given to honor supporters, and worked on the publication

the Royal Saudi Air Force, first commander

for the first initiative of 21,39. She also hosts at her house every year

of the Air Force, and he mastered the art

21,39 guests, those who come from abroad specifically to visit the

of Arabic Calligraphy with all its beautiful

exhibition, to see her husband›s Talal Yousef Zahid collection, who

geometric shapes, Nadia Zuhair loved the

loves collecting paintings and sculptures of Egyptians artists of the

beauty of Arabic calligraphy because of

first generation ( birth of the nineteenth century) to the fourth gener-

him, while Alshe learned from her mother

ation and has a large collection on display at their home in Jeddah.

Alsharifa Sokina Al Ghalib drawing roses, de-

Nadia Al Zuhair shared this hobby, but her love was for collecting

signing shapes on paper, choosing colors of

Saudi artists artwork, where they began before thirty years starting

the yarn and arranging patterns, where she

from the beginning of Saudi artists such as the late Abdel-Halim

and her mother have mastered the art of

Radawi and the famous artists Safyia Binzagr and Munira Mose-

embroidery and sewing for her family inside

ley, and this collection was displayed in their home in Dorat alarous

the house, where she used to make dolls for

which visiting it was included in the 21,39 third program.

her daughter out of cloth dress them with

written by //ESRAA EMAD

BASMA ALSULAIMAN

Basma Al-Sulaiman is a patron of the Saudi Art and founder of BASMOCA foundation. She participated in the creation of Jeddah sculptures garden. Through her e-museum in the Internet, Basma supports the Saudi art and artists by promoting them locally and internationally. Basma focuses on the demands of the Saudi Art Council and their activity. Her goal is to connect the Saudi culture to the public through the language of art, and to promote the right image for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Abroad. She specializes in presemting Saudi artists to the international arena and drive them to participate in international exhibitions and important museums , such as the British Museum, the Institute of the Arab world institutions, like the work of Raja and Shadia Alem (Black Bow) presented in the Hajj exhibition at the Institute of the Arab world in the past year. Along with other works of Ahmed Mater and AbdelNasser Gharim. Basma aims to be one of the bridges between the Saudi art and international art world through her online museum and her participation in the Saudi Art Council.

SARA SALIM BINLADIN

written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

Art beats to Sarah bin Laden›s roots, deep into her childhood years,

a strong emotional value for them because

with more memories of her years are attending exhibitions with her

it portrayed a mountain, and is linked en-

family whether in Jeddah or in Austria or France. Countries that she

tirely to land and nature. She adds: « Since

lived among them during the years of her life. The study of history of

we are nature lovers, and earth represents

art and passion for photography was the motivation for entering the

to me something deeper than just a place

art world, where she is a member of the National Council of acquisi-

to live, so the painting of British artist, Patrick

tion at the Museum of Modern Art in Paris. Her role in Saudi Arabia›s

Pukter, attracted our attention and led us to

Art Council is participating in the Education Department and hospi-

buy it. »

tality. The first painting acquired by Sara was with her husband had

EISSA ABDULWAHAB BOUGARY Issa Bogari co-founder›s 3 Points advertising agency , his relationship with art is not traditional, it began with his visit to the principal›s Office at school when he was young, which represents the first argument between him and one of his teachers for his objection to the existence of an art class, but his relationship with art soon evolved after discovering that art has a hand in all things in life, even in things that we do not understand, yet. As years passed, Eissa met art but in other forms, through an awareness commercial ad entitled «preform regular prayers», he adds: «

SARA ABDULLAH ALIREIZA

through I realized that my work was a kind of art, and then just startwritten by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

Sarah member of the Saudi Art

Sarah appreciates art so she acquires what

Council believes that art is a uni-

captures her interest, and is aware of the

versal language, it offers a crea-

importance of preserving the heritage and

tive way to express yourself, enrich

building a generation that understands art

human life and society and build

and appreciates it. She sponsors art initia-

bridges of understanding to the

tives, and supportive many art institutions

world inside and outside national

Arab and Islamic identity is very important

borders alike, to achieve this Sa-

to her and its existence on a global basis is

rah works through her role in the

an important principle for her, so is the sec-

education program at 21.39 Jed-

retary «Barakat» charity, a non-profit organi-

dah art. She says: «We believe that

zation registered in the United Kingdom to

the recognition of art and culture

encourage the study of the history of Islamic

must start from an early age to instill

art, and preserving the architecture herit-

awareness, enhance the mind, and

age and Islamic art. Some of the Important

hoping to be a source of inspiration

institutions She supports are The British Muse-

for upcoming artists , and to add to

um, the National Museum of Modern Art in

the artistic scene which became

Paris, the Arab World Institute in Paris, Delfina

famous internationally because of

Foundation, Los Angeles County Modern

its inherent intellectual depth

Art and others, while focusing on increasing her collection from the Arab world.

ed to appreciate art and my understanding for its sophisticated dimensions. A paradigm shift towards my understanding of art was my visit to «Saatchi» Gallery in London, it has been confirmed that I appreciate art more than I imagine , he added: «We must not forget that there was another person who helped spark my interest in art, which is My friend Mohamed Hafiz, and I›m grateful for that.» The concept of art in his view now is being a language that has no boundaries, and the most beautiful way to express yourself or for most of the issues in life, like humanitarian concerns. He adds: «Art has a impact on my views on the world around me because some of the work may enter my thoughts to form a mental image which will represents my vision of things around me, and art for me is a ways to ask questions, for example, in the current exhibition there is a work that says « land for sale» I think it raises a lot of questions in the minds of anyone who see it everywhere on billboards Eissa said to Design magazine, « I was invited to join the board because of my experience in the field of communication, and was responsible for creating the brannding of the core of the initiative of the Council of 21.39, and in addition I am the communication consultant and public relations and reasponsible to review of all matters and materials related ».

written by //MASHAEL ALAMRI

62 The beginnings of my interest in art..

First artwork I collected..

My initial passion was Islamic art, in which I

Mmm… possibly a piece of street art i found in a flea market in Paris,

was doing an art and business course at So-

it was a stencil of Obama on the back of a refrigerator grill. It was

theby’s. I hadn’t realised that the second

the year Obama was elected, for me it represented a time of such

part of the course was actually in Japanese

hope and possibility…

Saudi art today…

porary course so that at least I could spend

I think that over the past few years, Saudi art has been on a bit of a

the rest of my time learning something com-

rollercoaster, it exploded onto the scene and has gained so much

pletely new.

I went from being a skeptic,

acclaim and attention, deservedly so for the most part. I feel a dis-

of the “any five year can do that” variety,

tinct calming down recently, which is a natural development that I

to a complete fanatic, within the space of

think is a very important stage, as now is when I believe can have a

a day. It was like I was hit with a lightening

chance to regulate and consolidate.

bolt, all of a sudden, i got it, i understood,

imitate them. Her passion for the art and history made her change course in college from archeology to art history, and here the story began. Raneem indicated that her focus on the production of her own art, but all that changed after her Master studies, which was focused on the business side of art, with a research titled « formation of the

to spend from 4 to 6 months, in conducting numerous interviews

up… Afterwards I did various internships at

AYA ABDULLAH ALIREIZA

trying to create invisible bridges to link her with them by trying to

art market in Saudi Arabia “ and adds : “ Lack of references led me

and a whole world of possibilities opened

my journey began in earnest.

in a family that is interested in art in all its forms, Since she was a

tions were blooming in her mind about the artists and their lives,

all. So I decided to transfer to the contem-

fore settling at Athr Gallery in Jeddah where

Raneem Farsi always had a stron relationship with art. She grew up

student and art history attracted her, and through art classes , ques-

and Chinese art, which didn’t interest me at

art galleries and art review magazine be-

RANEEM ZAKI FARSI

Street art experience..

with artists from most regions of the Kingdom, and anyone who has

Inner Voices was one of the most fun pro-

to do with art, its history, and its market. It was between the years

jects i’ve ever done. So incredibly different

2009 and 2010, I became aware of a missing link between the artists

from the fine art scene. Completely stripped

and all the marketing needs for their art , their agents, and under-

of all commercial interest, it is purely about

stood at the time that the market needs to fill these gaps» then she

having a message and making your mark

changed course and decided to work as a consultant, because her

with it. The city is your canvas, the whole

own works of art can be implemented at any other time.

population your audience. It is so accessi-

Her aspirations through in her participation in the Saudi Art Council,

ble and i found that people engaged with

is opening up opportunities for everyone to get an education and

it in way that was so much more involved

equal chances in this area.

that they would engage with art in an exhibition space. It taught me so much about

Hayat Shobokshi represents Christie›s auc-

the voice of Saudi’s youth and of the effi-

tion house in Saudi Arabia. Her role in of

cacy and impact of street art as a means of expression. The best part about it, you don’t need a degree or any formal training, anyone can do it. Street art is definitely an area of Saudi art that I want to revisit in the near future inshallah..

HAYAT ALI SHOBOKSHI

21.39 Jeddah arts is dealing with the exhibition guests coming from abroad with Abdullah Alturki and Sarah Abdullah bin Ladin.

‫الربنامج‬

THE PROGRAM

PROGRAMME

SC HEDULE

WEDNESDAY, F EBRU A RY 10 T H 8:30 - 11:00 pm

◗ Opening of [Earth and Ev

An exhibition commissioned by SA and Hamza Serafi Gold Moor mall, gate 2, Al Zahra

THURSD AY, F EBRU ARY 11 T H

‫الربنامج‬

THE PROGRAM

WEDNESD AY, F EBRU ARY 10 TH 8:30 - 11:00 pm

◗ Opening of [Earth and Ever After] An exhibition commissioned by SAC, curated by Mona Khazindar and Hamza Serafi Gold Moor mall, gate 2, Al Zahra District

THURSD AY,F EBRU ARY 11 TH 6:30 pm

◗ [Al Hangar] Exhibition Corner of Nahda st and Nahdat Al Adab

7:30 pm

◗ Athr Visit Contemporary Art and Project Spaces exhibitions opening Serafi Mega Mall, Tahlia Street, 5th Floor Office Towers

8:30 pm

◗ Tasami Gallery Visit Serafi Mega Mall, Tahlia Street, 1st floor

F RIDAY,F EBRU ARY 12 TH 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm

SATURD AY ,FEBRU A RY 13 TH

◗ [Al Mangour: Loved & Beloved] Exhibition For his first solo exhibition, artist and designer Ahmad Sami Angawi, in collaboration with Athr, highlights the beauty of Mangour, a forgotten Hijazi craft, through the documentation and analysis of the creation process of the Mangour. Al Hoosh, Balad.

6:00 pm

◗ [The Everlasting Now] Exhibition Emy Kat Solo exhibition curated by Hamza Serafi Nassief House, Al Balad

WEDNESD AY ,FEBRU ARY 16 TH 8:00 pm

Lawrence Abu Hamdan Solo Exhibition Opening: Thursday, 11th of February, 2016 Athr, Serafi Mall, Tahlia St.

◗ 21,39 Symposium Noor Taibah Hall, Abdullah Al Khurayji street

5:00 pm

LEFT Ayman Yossri Daydban Mother from the My Father Over The Tree series , 2015 H113 X W83 cm Silicon, soil on vintage posters

◗ Preview of [In Praise of Hands] Hosted by Van Cleef & Arpels. Van Cleef & Arpels boutique on Tahlia St,Jameel Square

9:15 am - 1:15 pm

Right Ayman Yossri Daydban Aazib Bachelor from the My Father Over The Tree series , 2015 H113 X W83 cm Silicon, soil on vintage posters

◗ Hafez Gallery visit Moneirah Mosley Exhibition Opening 3rd Floor Bougainvillea, King Abdulaziz Road

Athr presents renowned Lebanese artists Lawrence Abu Hamdan’s first solo exhibition in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The exhibition is centered on two bodies of work by the artist: The Whole Truth, 2012 and Beneath The Surface 2015. The theme of each triggered by the current application of voice analysis as a lie detection method recently piloted by European, Russian and Israeli governments as well as being employed in border agencies and insurance companies all over the world. This technology uses the voice as a kind of stethoscope, an instrument to measure internal bodily responses to stress and tension; a material channel that allows the law’s listening to bypass speech and delve deeper into the body of its subjects.

SHOW ME THE LIGHT

Ayman Yossri Daydban Solo Exhibition Opening: Thursday, 11th of February, 2016 Athr, Serafi Mall, Tahlia St.

Athr prersents Show Me The Light, a solo exhibition by Palestinian artist Ayman Yossri Daydban. The exhibition will occupy 5 spaces of the gallery, and will exhibit new and old works of Ayman’s iconic series including: Subtitles, Ihramat and Maharem. Along with earlier works that have never been exhibited before at the gallery, Ayman will also present White Noise, a live performance and the first of a new body of work titled, The State. In each space throughout the exhibition, the works individually stand-alone and address matters that Ayman continuously investigates. White Noise realizes the underlying notion throughout the exhibition: an invitation by Ayman to discover a “state” whilst exploring a body of work in each space.

‫الربنامج‬

THE PROGRAM

AL MANGOUR: LOVED AND BELOVED

Ahmad Angawi Solo Exhibition Opening: Saturday, 13th of February, 2016 Al Hoosh, Al Balad (adjacent to The House of Traditional Arts)

THE EVERLASTING NOW Emy Kat Solo Exhibition Opening: Saturday, 13th of February, 2016 Nassied House, Al Balad

The Everlasting Now is a documentation, which aims to capture the beauty of a slowly disappearing heritage. While conveying the appearance of neglect, the message is one of hope, that despite the dilapidation, there is still beauty in abundance that needs care and looking after. The Everlasting Now seeks to provoke questions such as ‘What happened to this heritage?’ ‘Why has it been neglected for so long?’ but most importantly, ‘What can be done to preserve it?’ The project blurs the lines between documentation and narrative. While the objective is to visually preserve the Hejaz heritage at this moment in time; in its present state of decay, the project also goes beyond documentation with its multilayered approach to storytelling, in attempts to paint a fuller picture with conflicting emotions of sweet sensations, nostalgia, appreciation of beauty and sentiments that are tainted by sadness, anger, and anxiety. More than anything, this project is an attempt to raise awareness and is a call to action. This heritage is a gift as well as a responsibility.

For his first solo exhibition, artist and designer Ahmad Sami Angawi, in collaboration with Al Makkiyeah Foundation and Athr, presents an artistic project and research that explores and highlights the beauty of the Mangour, a forgotten Hijazi craft. Byway of documenting and analyzing the creation process of the Mangour, the artist investigates the Islamic geometry hidden in the Mangour’s formation, and attempts to shed light on the knowledge of proportion concealed within its depths. The study of the Mangour is visibly incorporated in the structure of the Roshan, an integral feature of Hejazi architecture, in which its design and functionality is based on the notion of duality. The Roshan separates the outside of an architectural structure and what is hidden within. Its design is based on its function to conceal and reveal, to let in light and casr shadow, to warm and cool. Whilst it stands as a veiled architectural element that protects the sacredness of the inhabitants within, its design functions as a bridge; to bring balance to the outside world. Mangour: Loved and Beloved, (Asheg & Mashoug) describes the relationship between two halves joined to create a formidable unit of one. The joinery method in the artist’s Mangour is designed without the use of a joining agent. This relationship is a physical realization of a spiritual connection between man and his heritage.

،2

11,10,

◗

7:30

،2

11, ◗◗

8:30 6:30

11,

TASAMI HALL joined part of the 21,39 jed- 7:30 dah arts program with a collective exhibition «margins», where the exhibition deals ، with many social issues, through the work 10:30 - 5:00 ] calligraphy, photography, varied between profile synthetics and models, as presented 8:30 by، more than 30 artists and the exhibition runs until 11 the month of February 2016 .. And opens the margins of this year›s field is the largest in front of emerging artists, according to what director of TASAMI and 1:15assistant 9:15 general21,39 curater of the exhibition artist Ahalis, said] «from here extend 10:30 our sin-- 5:00 cere thanks and appreciation to Her Royal ، ) Highness Princess Jawaher girl Majid, Presi-5:00 ، dent of Saudi ART Council and all Council ، ، members for providing us the opportunity ، to participate in this great artistic event, also extend our thanks and appreciation ، 1:15 21,39 to Mr. Hamza Serafi supervisor of the jury of 9:15 margins and other members of the Com- 6:00 ) mittee, D.aft Fadaaq, Dr. Sami Grady, ، )، 5:00 A.adnan، sickle.

12 ,

◗ ،

ARTISTS NASSER ALSALEM 8:30 RAMI ALGUTHAMI ZIYAD ALSAYED AHMAD ANGAWI FAROOK 12 , MAJED ANGAWI MARWAH ALMUQAIT EMAD 10:30 ALJIBREEN - 5:00 AHAD ALAMOUDI AHMAD RUBAT ALI ALSUMAYIN HAMOUD ALGHAMDI HUSSEIN RUBAT , 13 ABULKAREEM RAMI

◗ ◗

]

◗

]

◗

]

◗ ◗

21,39

◗

(

16 ،

◗◗

(

8:00 6:00

1:15

ALHANGR

ALHANGAR back another round in the cultural movement, and a unique experience, away from the divisions of art and status , it is space for creativity whatever the title is it is a group work and effort under no umbrella , with the participation of 14 artists. Nasser Al-Salem one of the artists said: “ that Alhangar is a cultural movement which is open an independent space for artists , adds « not an exhibition nor art gallery hall, not a cultural center, is a place that combines them, a space to express whatever type of art, Alhangar has no General topic it is derived from the philosophy of the movement in general. » Rami Qathami one of the artists of the exhibition , ALHANGAR is a collection of contemporary art, between video installations and various forms of creativity, explains « theatre performance today will present for 20 minutes, and I think that this new addition».

9:15

5:00

6:00

)

، (

) ،

16 ، ◗

16 ،

8:00

MOHAMMED RUBAT

◗

)

◗

ART CONSULTANTS 7:30 RANEEM FARSI AYA ALIREZA

◗

6:30

◗

◗ ◗

13 ,

(

11:00 - 8:30

،2

12 , 13

◗

]

◗

10, ]

THE PROGRAM

6:30 11:00 - 8:30

◗

◗ ◗

]

‫الربنامج‬

8:00

◗ (

6:00

) ،

‫الربنامج‬

THE PROGRAM

16 ، ◗ -

8:00

thetic rituals, when she exhibited interest in exploring the historical civilizations extending from the Arabian Peninsula. She was inspired by artist, Al Wasity, in her early manifestation of the singularity of her aesthetic achievements, while her early education in the arts participated in enriching her experience, and widening the scope of her visual interests that are related to cultural inheritance, civilizations, literature and poetry. It also extended to her humanitarian stances in times of war -particularly those who leave impact on innocent children in more than one form -thus emphasizing her deep connection to a humane and cultural consciousness. Hafez Gallery, take pleasure in being part of the return of the pioneer artist Mounirah Mosly after many years to solo exhibitions in Jeddah. We believe in the role that this artist represents, and in the uniqueness, and significance of her journey in the local art scene. They take great pride in the creative minds that founded the Saudi art movement, in whichever creative form it came to produce. They hope that this elite exhibition contributes to the accelerating the pace of the wheel of art and raising the bar of aesthetic taste in our beloved country.

Hafez Gallery hosts the solo exhibition of Saudi artist Mounirah Mosly after 40 years not exhibiting in Jeddah to be curated by gallery owner Qaswara hafiz and Monira Mosly . This exhibition comes within her long career in art, characterized with its richness, singularity and modern input in the world of art. Mosly is considered a pioneer of the arts in Saudi Arabia. In 1968, she held, along with her fellow national, artist Safia bin Zagr, the first female art exhibition in Dar Al Tarbiya Al-Haditha school in Jeddah. She continued and held a solo exhibition in Salat Al- Shams in Jeddah in 1972, and in 1973, she was the first Saudi female artist to hold a solo exhibition in the Municipality of Riyadh. Mosly is considered one of the few creatives whose talent revealed eloquence in her aes-

‫الربنامج‬

THE PROGRAM

THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM

Members of the Saudi Art Council managing the educational program Sarah Ali Reza , Sara bin Laden and Nawaf Al-Nassar concentrate their efforts on the development of the educational program offered to the Saudi youth. To define a rich artistic culture stemming from their homeland, and to develop understanding and appreciation of local art movements and increase their pride in it. To achieve that Sarah Ali Reza says, «we do tours for school students to the Council exhibitions, providing workshops and lectures for free to an audience of students and others, by artists and experts in the field of local and global art, and is currently working on the establishment of educational programs and artistic residencies for the development of the Saudis and the

curators in cooperation with the competent international bodies » To talk extensively about the workshops, Sara binladen says,: »We aim in our selection to the diversify of our program and selecting everything new in the world of art, culture and creativity of different topics for workshops and lectures from various arts, and contemporary Islamic, such as calligraphy, art photography, films, ceramics, porcelain, sculpture, recycled materials the Islamic gilding, documentation photography, and other industry », Nawaf al nassar adds that there are many local artists who contributed to the workshops that focus on the cultural dimension in addition to the participation of a group of artists from outside the Kingdom to enrich the program . Nawaf Al-Nassar also pointed out that the establishment will be a series of workshops for students of government schools in the education offices in different neighborhoods to get access to the largest segment of society.

One of theVisiting students may be a future artist, our role is to instill a sense of apperciation to art and understanding to let that artist in them appear.

GOING BACK TO THE MEMORY OF FIRST EVENTS

2014 2015

Orientalism

Food is for thinking and not for the stomach

GOING BACK IN MEMORY written by //ESRAA EMAD

The idea of 21,39 came to light in 2014 and aims to be a platform of the local and international definition of the Saudi art and culture scene. It has made Jeddah into a center of international culture, and in its prime years has produced 2 successful exhibitions, “Moallaqat” and “Past is Prologue”, which have left a lasting inspiration on each visitor and enthusiast who experienced the natural evolution of Saudi art. Saudi art has come a long way starting from themes like realism which reflect our past, a past filled with horses, camels and deserts, to our present era. The first exhibition was named “Moallaqat” (Suspensions) in order to express that art has lit the path to express unlimited opportunities over time, for suspensions are what embody the talent that nature has given to old poets; in a time when poetry was the only way one could only express himself. Poems were used to describe dimensions and deep meanings in the depths of the Arab culture. We have now reached thousands of ways to express the depths of our feelings. As for the “Past is Prologue” exhibition, which featured 24 of the best artists of the 20th century, it was a tribute to those artists who represented trends which were prevalent, different, and distinctive. They were the roots of the beginning of contemporary Saudi art.

MOALLAQAT Past is Prologue

Allow me to mention some of the prominent artworks which were featured in the past two exhibitions; 2014’s “Moallaqat” and 2015’s “Past is Prologue”:

It is a sure agreement that whoever attended the 1st 21,39 exhibition could not have forgotten the large aluminum pots which filled an entire wall of the exhibit. Seen upon entering through the gate after the main hall, those pots occupied a prominent area in the exhibition. They are the work of the artist Maha Molooh, who aims to pay tribute to our heritage and literary testament to the current passion for all that is visual, especially since antique aluminum pots (which came from various old markets) have been used over the years by Arabs as cooking apparatus in urban areas and in Bedouin tents, and even at restaurants at a later time.

Those of you who visited the “Moallaqat” exhibition in 2014 cannot forget that very small room which looked like a window filled with colors. Many were taking picture of its interior, without wondering why the project looked like a window. The answer? The most obvious issue which has become very clear, is that when you look at the suspensions, they look like a window overlooking the contemporary society, which reflects on how art impacts this society. Dana Awartani has presented this window, named “Orientalism” to the “Moallaqat” exhibition, which is itself a symbol of the rise of contemporary art in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Nature + Human = Art

I waited for you, but you didn’t show up

Images of Saudi women in their traditional outfits always caught my eye, therefore I did not forget the canvas painting, created by acrylic colors, of five Saudi women, each of whom looked very different and expressive from the other. It is the work of artist Taghreed AlBogshi, and it delivered a beautiful message, “An invitation to optimism. We spend a lot of time waiting for our wishes which haven’t come true yet, so AlBogshi has invited us through this artwork – which was displayed for two years in the Moallaqat exhibition – to not despair, but to persevere in order to achieve our wishes.

Hollywood reflects the Muslim world!

In the same arena there were strange colorful works of art, and I imagined that they were arrows, but I soon discovered that they looked more like a dome. In conclusion, they are building blocks of synthetic sponges of different sizes, by the artist Mosaed AlHalees. Halees chose this style of artwork because in his point of view, one of the most complex aspects of architecture is the appearance of the art of architecture which has taken over the Islamic world; evolving and developing it. Halees reduced this architectural style of high complexity to a simplified twodimensional piece.

And to conclude my tour among my 21,39 experience, I met Saudi abstract artist Yusef Ahmed, who took a part in the exhibition with a panel from his own personal exhibition named “Nature’s Conversation”. The artist tried to test me about the meaning of his portrait. It seemed to me that nature as a whole was lacking detail, and my interpretation was correct, but I couldn’t seem to get the objective behind that idea. He then told me that his portrait is a conversation between the sky and clouds and Earth. His works speaks of nature in a simple, impartial, and unbiased way; so that he puts nature’s details aside and focuses on the essence. The sky and clouds shape the herbs and the wild creatures which live in our dry atmosphere, and creatures have an impact, and each human being has a role in this Earth because it has found life. In the end, he summarized his whole piece in one phrase: “Nature + Human = Art!”

, Drawing was my favourite subject to study I never imagined it will be my life

SAFEYA BINZAGR

Safeya Binzagr Zaboun, 1969 Oil on wood H80 X W60 cm Image courtesy of the Darat Safeya Binzagr

INNER VOICES

82 written by // MASHAEL ALAMRI

INNER VOICES exhibition tried to express the pulse of the street with the participation of 18 Saudi artists, and was held at the Alammaria - Jeddah balad, within the activities of the art 21.39 jeddah arts many places of the world, drawing on the walls express real concern for members of the community, Or is it features half-painted by artists in haste. «We would like to teach all the young people in the neighborhood that art is not for the elite, street art does not necessarily have to be an art of sabotage, but may be a way to an an expression and educational foremost, and that art is for everyone. « What may draw the visitor to INNER VOICES is a warm youth participation, directing visitors to the exhibition venue, guarding the place, it has gathered the different social classes of citizens and residents, raneem farsi said«This exhibition is the first ,we aspire to repeat the experiment in other neighborhoods, Kathurat hawajesee is a visual culture and brings the art of the street .«

SHARA 2015

Shara exhibition was organized in the holy month of Ramadan and it is the first of its kind. It started on 14 Ramadan 1436, and lasted for seven days. The number of attendees during that period of time reached more than 1025 visitors. It is the first exhibition of its kind since it gathers a collection of galleries under one roof, including: Almansoria “silent Auction “ which quarter of its revenue went into the educational programs of SAC Athr Gallery, Hafez Gallery, Tasami, and Metro Glitch.

2015 written by // MASHAEL ALAMRI

FAST FORWARD The 21,39 initiative has chosen to highlight the history of Saudi art, by going back in time to get to know names of people who had a large impact in the infrastructure of art. The exhibition showed the best, the pioneers, and the important milestones in the history of Saudi art. Upon entering the exhibition, visitors will travel a journey through different eras, and through its halls they will move between the 1960s up to the present. The walls will display photographs documenting history, giving glimpses of the most important phases and personalities. With the presence of the most important pieces of Saudi art, the exhibition tried to express the history of Saudi art in a story-like approach, starting from the year 1960 AD, the time when student scholarships were granted to the young ambitious Saudis to travel to study in Egypt and Italy, in order for them to return and pass on their expertise to the generations that followed. It made an impact for the start of exhibitions in Jeddah. Visitors should see the leap in art history, since that time until this present day. Bashar AlShorogi, the exhibition coordinator, says, “the exhibition is a research project, and it is not for artists so much that it is for the sake of art history. The works on display are witnesses to these events and phases; the attendees exit with more insight on important historical events.

MY NATION IN MY EYES

, The competion

embodied true emotions towards the nation and our king...

2014 // 2015

written by // MASHAEL ALAMRI

The initiatives of the Saudi Art Council takes art awareness into high consideration, and has created an initiative called “My Nation in My Eyes” specifically for school students. Its aim revolves around the manifestations of the National Day celebrations and to transmit the spirit of belonging; by using art as a means of expression and thus developing the thought and creative process through it. Everyone had the opportunity to consider how to express their pride on a green map. More than 3686 students participated in the “My Nation in My Eyes” contest in the first year, whereas in the second year, 8872 students of all grades participated. The initiative shapes an aspect of social cooperation. Artists and educational departments have contributed to produce and forecast works of art at a promising level. Nadia Al Zuhair, the council member and contest supervisor, said that the contest embodied sincerity of the contestants’ feelings towards their country and ruler. One of the contestant judges, Hamza Serafi, has praised the active participation of the students, and their level of artwork. The competition, which is organized by the Saudi Art Council, gathers a selection of ambitious youths and seeks to nurture the local community through the promotion of art and culture. Nadia Al Zuhair states, “The sincere feelings for the nation and its ruler have been formed in this “My Nation in My Eyes” contest.

Lichtenstein, Roy Crying Girl Ink on paper x 25 1/2 inches 1/2 19 ABDULNASSER GHAREM The capitol dome installation

From UBS ART COLLECTION

Jeddah’s art revival By Ali Janoudi, UBS Group Head Middle East and North Africa, and Mahmoud Abdulhadi, CEO UBS Saudi Arabia

Even though the global art world may not be aware, the second largest city in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has transformed itself into a center for arts and culture. Institutional support such as ours is helping to promote emerging talent while facilitating the development of a solid art market in Jeddah. In the Middle East, UBS’ support of the arts scene is a reflection of a changing Saudi Arabia. Jeddah itself is home not just to fine art but also art movements that celebrate calligraphy and street-graffiti. Jeddah has emerged with a number of home-grown galleries, exhibitions, and fine art institutions which continue to garner public, private, and institutional support.

Saudi art and artists are transcending borders, with exhibitions in world class institutions like the Victoria and Albert Museum and the British Museum. In 2011, Saudi Arabia presented its first ever pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Christie›s Middle East sold a piece by Abdulnasser Gharem for USD 842,500 (premium included) - the highest grossing work by a Saudi artist to date. As the Saudi art scene expands and the market develops, collectors will increasingly need advice to navigate the risks and opportunities presented. Our sponsorship, for the second year running of the ‘21,39’ initiative, is aimed at promoting cross-cultural understanding, and is part of actively supporting cultural and artistic endeavours around the world. UBS support of ’21,39’ helps to showcase Saudi culture dating thousands of years- shaped by its Islamic heritage, ancient trade ties and its Bedouin traditions, along with the rapid growth of the art world in the span of just a few years. Through the various tours, workshops and talks, ’21,39’ will present opportunities for appreciation of the wider artistic culture that exists and is developing throughout. UBS is helping the Saudi arts scene build bridges with the global art community.

ABOUT UBS AND CONTEMPORARY ART UBS’s long and substantial record of patronage in contemporary art actively enables clients and audiences to participate in the international conversation about art and the global art market through the firm’s contemporary art platform. UBS’s extensive roster of contemporary art initiatives and programs include: the UBS Art Collection, one of the world’s largest and most important corporate collections of contemporary art; the firm’s long-term global support for the premier international Art Basel shows in Basel, Miami Beach and Hong Kong, for which UBS serves as global Lead Partner; and a collaboration with the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Foundation on the Guggenheim UBS MAP Global Art Initiative. These activities are complemented by a number of regional partnerships with fine art institutions including the Foundation Beyeler in Switzerland, Galleria d’Arte Moderna in Milan, the Nouveau Musée National de Monaco, the Louisiana Museum in Denmark and the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. UBS also provides its clients with insight into the contemporary art world through the new and free iPad and iPhone app Planet Art and the bi-annual Art Market Review. Through the UBS Art Competence Center, UBS provides bespoke advice on art-related matters and supports clients in mitigating risks involved in art transactions. A team of dedicated art advisors guides clients through the art world providing services ranging from art management and art transaction to estate planning. The key insights on art provided by those in-house experts support clients in navigating the global art world. Moreover, the UBS Arts Forum offers an exclusive platform allowing clients to engage with the leaders of the contemporary art scene.

For more information about UBS’s :commitment to contemporary art, visit www.ubs.com/art UBS Saudi Arabia / UBS Group AG Media contacts Switzerland:+41-44-234 85 00 Mediarelations@ubs.com KSA Ahmad Al-Raifee FleishmanHillard Ahmad.Al-Refaie@fleishmaneurope.com

88 O B S E S S I O N

FOR ALL THE LOVELY TEAM OF SAC WORKING BEHIND THE SCENES : THANK YOU

Subscribe / 6 ISSUES TO PURCHASE A SUBSCRIPTION OF DESIGN MAGAZINE, SIMPLY COMPLETE THIS FORM AND RETURN IT BY EMAIL TO INFO@DESIGNKSA.COM

Design Magazine

‫اإلسم األول‬ ‫إسم العائلة‬

THANK YOU

‫شكرا‬

Hani Makki - Coordinator Turky Mohammed - Coordinator Amwaj Ghazi- Administrations Executive Mohanna Melybari - Financial Executive Ryan Ahsour - Graphic Designer & Social Media Coordinator Nada Sheikh-Yasin- Curatorial & Programme Manager Basma Kholief - Project Manager

‫الجنسية‬ ‫مني إنت؟‬ ‫الهاتف‬ ‫الجوال‬ ‫امييل‬ ‫ب‬.‫ص‬ ‫الرمز الربيدي‬ ‫البلد‬ ‫املدينة‬

@Design_Magazine

Designnetwork

info@designksa.com

FIRST NAME LAST NAME

NATIONALITY ABOUT YOU TEL MOBILE EMAIL P.O BOX ZIP CODE COUNTRY CITY INCLUDE MY INFORMATION IN, DESIGN ONLINE + PRINTED COPY ENCLOSED PLEASE FIND MY CHEQUE PAYABLE TO KHOLOUD ATTAR EST.

SIGNATURE

d es i g n k s a .com | T +966 12 6116765 | P.O. BOX 126729 | JEDDAH 21352 KSA