Arts round up.

Byline: Our Correspondent

MuscatAAEs art season is officially in full swing. This week is primarily dominated by calligraphy, with solo exhibitions of calligraphy artists at the Crowne Plaza Muscat and Bait al Baranda.

A third show, which opened on November 15 at Bait Muzna Gallery, is a group exhibition of three international artists, AaeNew TerritoriesAAE, which includes work by Yousef Ahmad, Mounirah Mosly and Ahmed al Bahrani. It continues until December 6.

Calligraphy by Saleh al Shukairi:

This solo exhibition opened on November 17 and will continue until November 20 at the Crowne Plaza, after which it moves to Al Madina Art Gallery in MQ, where it will run until December 3, 2009.

The exhibition is part of a series being held by the Crowne Plaza in collaboration with Al Madina Art Gallery. Saleh al Shukairi is a well-known local artist. He was the first Omani and only Arab artist to be invited as a jury member for the Delphi Games 2009 in Korea. He was also part of a team of 45 artists recently invited to Sharjah to work on the worldAAEs longest painting, titled Love and Peace.

This is his first exhibition after his return home and follows a stint teaching aspiring calligraphers in Oman. Saleh is a self-taught artist and had little if any training. Since childhood, he has been fascinated by various art forms; he said he began painting by the age of ten.

However, as resources for calligraphers were meagre, he had to look abroad for guidance. This proved fruitful not only in the intended sense but also because it broadened his horizons, giving him exposure to various forms and media.

This is how Saleh explains his fascination with the shape and style of the Arabian letter. His work can be broadly divided into two types Au classic and abstract calligraphy. The classic work comprises renditions of Ayats and Quranic verses. Abstract art is just that Au abstract; a visual experience with the intensity of colours and textures of the painting.

AoThere is no limitation to my choice of medium. I use everything Au acrylics, oil, pen and ink, prints Au that I think the composition needs. I am looking for ways to paint in the air and water Au something like suspended particles in space.Ao

Some of his work features plain repetitions of a single Arabic character, but contrasting colour lends it a depth and texture. Saleh said these pieces Aaeexpress feelings and the alphabetAAEs essential valueAAE. Saleh is also doing his bit to promote calligraphy in the region by teaching it to young artists. Some of the work in this exhibition is a result of these workshops for his students.

AaeBeautiful Names of AllahAAE at Bait al Baranda Bait al Baranda is currently hosting a solo exhibition of calligraphic work by German-born Turkish artist Mustafa Anlas. AaeBeautiful Names of AllahAAE opened on November 14 and continues until November 23. The exhibition showcases calligraphy in a non-traditional form.

It was opened by His Eminence Sheikh Ahmed al Khalili, the Grand Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman, in the presence of H E Sultan bin Hamdoon al Harthy, chairman of Muscat Municipality, and other dignitaries. The calligraphy on display is modern and a breath of fresh air.

Instead of the usual representation of painted Arabic text, MustafaAAEs work is a three-dimensional representation, each piece an amalgamation of multiple layers of cut board pieces painted and then mounted on a plain white surface. AoI have invented this new technique and have perfected it over seven years,Ao said Mustafa.

He compares his work to hand-crafted embroidery to explain the detail and the effort required. Most of his work is rendered in seven layers, although a few exceptions have three layers. His use of seven layers is deliberate. AoThey represent the seven samawat (skies) found in Islamic references. As most of my work shows the names of Allah or small Quranic Ayats; it is a very apt form of representation.Ao

MustafaAAEs work is simple on face value Au there are no embellishments and no clash of colours that vie for attention. The works are done only in primary colours Au red, blues and yellows with a just a couple of pieces in ochre-green.

AoEvery colour has a meaning. Red represents love and importance, blue represents the relation between God and man, while yellow Au a natural earthy colour Au represents our cumulative wisdom. These are the keystones to a puzzle and when you put them together, then only you can understand your own mind,Ao said Mustafa, who has a degree in philosophy from Hamburg College.

The exhibition is worth a visit even for those who cannot read Arabic. Malik al Hinai, director of Bait al Baranda, believes that this is calligraphy for the 21st century. His Eminence Sheikh Khalili summed it up. AoAllahAAEs names do not require beautification but this helps people connect more with them and helps them understand the meaning,Ao he said.

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