2023-07-30 08:20:00
A wedding of Arab art in central London and a collection of the “Barjeel” Foundation’s holdings
In the prestigious St. James district in central London, behind the doors of the Christie’s auction house, a rich and dazzling world of brilliant examples of Arab art forms opens before us. Voices from different parts of the Arab world mix here. We see and immerse ourselves in the worlds of artists who expressed love, alienation, injustice, revolution and enthusiasm. We see aspects of their lives in front of us that speak to us and bring us back to the concerns, hopes and dreams that lived with them and moved from their imagination to inspire generations to come following them.
Christie’s announced the exhibition as the largest exhibition of Arab art in London, mobilized a full program of events for it, and proved that a commercial institution in the first place can transform its halls for the pure enjoyment of art.
Throughout the exhibition halls of the house and even on the steps of the stairs leading to the first floor, artworks that are organized in their expression of the Arab world are scattered.
The exhibition consists of two main sections: “Constellation: Selections from the Barjeel Art Foundation” and “A New Perception of Emirati Art: Hassan Sharif and Contemporary Voices.” The house confirms that it is the first time that this rich and diverse amount of Arab artwork has been displayed in London, which was achieved through a partnership with the Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah, and the Ministry of Culture and Youth in the United Arab Emirates.
Home and great hopes
In the “Constellation: Selections from the Barjeel Art Foundation” exhibition, and across the various halls, we are fascinated by the different expressions of homeland, longing, great hopes, and frustrations as well. Sultan Al Qasimi collected 1,200 works of modern and contemporary art, of which we see 100 in Christie’s. Like the rest of the collection, they express Arab culture and thought. Heritage and folkloric elements emerge through the various works, combined with expressions of freedom, independence, longing and identity. All of them are expressions that plunge into the depths of the beholder and carry us to the depths of our Arab culture.
Unique works:
In a small hall on the first floor, the exhibition lures us in to view the entire collection. A huge painting that occupies an entire wall, full of heroes of myths and folk tales, caressing our childhood memories and occupying the eye with its lively colors and movement emanating from it, surprises us, the painting by the Moroccan artist Fatima Hassan Al-Farooj entitled “The Day of the Feast”. On the opposite wall is a painting that bears many elements of popular culture. Here is the child who climbs a ladder to the sky to ride a white cloud to carry him to the moon. The painting appears to be influenced by the Russian artist Marc Chagall, but with an authentic Arab touch. It is by the Lebanese artist Abdel Hamid Baalbaki and bears the name “Childhood Dream.” »…And what a wonderful dream!
“Eyes of the Night” painting by Iraqi artist Madiha Omar
In the adjacent hall, the eye is distracted by the exquisitely coordinated paintings and sculptures. Among the paintings, the painting “Eyes of the Night” by the Iraqi artist Madiha Omar attracts us. It spins graceful formations from the letters of the Arabic language. The letters in the painting surprise us, jumping in front of us as if testing our ability to recognize them, as they are irregular in words according to the artistic “Hurufiyah” current, which the artist followed. .
In the next hall, another dazzling collection of works is topped by a wooden door engraved by the Iraqi artist, Muhammad Ghani Hikmat. His business card is known as the “Gate of the West,” although there are sites that refer to him as “The Gate of Strangers.” Personally, I lean towards the second definition, which carries a lot of meaning, the wooden gate. Beautiful Is it an entrance or exit? Perhaps its beauty is a reference to the beauty of the promise of immigration, which turns us into strangers, or is it embellished with dreams of a homeland? In general, it is a piece of superior beauty that attracts the eye and the heart, and perhaps that is enough.
Gate to the West by Muhammad Ghani Hikmat (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Paintings of Saudi art appear in this hall as well, including a painting by the artist Abd al-Rahman al-Sulaiman “Worshipers Leaving the Mosque” influenced by the Cubist doctrine, characterized by its calm and comfortable colors. Leaning on his cane and the child standing with his hand in the pocket of his robes, to the right of the painting is what looks like a beggar waiting for the charity of someone extending his hand with a piece of money.
A painting by the artist Abd al-Rahman al-Sulaiman, “Worshipers Leave the Mosque” (Asharq Al-Awsat)
There is also a painting by the creator Jawad Selim, “A Woman Selling Fabrics” and the painting “The Market Scene” by the Sudanese Omar Khairy. As for the Egyptian painting, Tahia Halim, “A Boat Trip”, it takes us to what seems like a family picnic on the Nile, and it shows Halim’s fascination with Nubia and its people.
The artist Engy Efflatoun appeared with her wonderful painting “The Village”, which is characterized by perpetual motion, expressing it in short, regular lines, as if palm trees were swaying in front of us, and barriers made of leaves were moving with the influence of air. Engy Efflatoun was not only known for her paintings expressing the life of the peasants, but also for her expressions of imprisonment and detention, influenced by her periods of imprisonment in the women’s prison in Qanatir in Egypt.
“Boat Trip” by artist Tahia Halim (Middle East)
Among the prominent works in the show is the painting “The Last Voice” by the Sudanese artist Ibrahim El-Salahi. Sultan Al-Qasimi says regarding him, “It is a giant work by the artist and has a high status. I remember visiting New York several years ago and meeting the director of one of the huge museums. I told him: We have bought (The Last Voice). ), without mentioning the artist’s name, but he immediately knew the painting, because of its status and importance that makes it go beyond being a painted painting. I think it is a testament to African art, a painting that expresses an entire continent and culture. In my opinion, it is one of the most important African and Arab paintings in the last century. In my estimation, it is one of the most important works of Ibrahim El-Salahi and one of his most (intimate) works expressing the artist’s life.
“The Last Voice” painting by Sudanese artist Ibrahim El-Salahi (Barjeel Art Foundation)
The exhibition is full of really great paintings and deserves more than one visit, which is available until the 23rd of next August.
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Sultan Al Qasimi and shared passion
During this month, the house held two meetings with Sultan Saud Al Qasimi, the founder of the Barjeel Foundation. During the first meeting, he spoke regarding the foundation and his favorite paintings. In the second session, he spoke extensively regarding the reasons for his tendency to collect paintings and his love for Arab culture.
In conversation with Dr. Reda Momani, Deputy Head of Christie’s Middle East and North Africa and curator, the discussion revolved around what led Al Qasimi to become a collector, the beginnings of his art collecting and the motivation behind his passion for Arab art.
Al-Moumni goes back with the questions to the beginnings, to the period of university studies and the beginning of working life, then asks him regarding passion, regarding art and what attracted him to it? Al-Qasimi begins by expressing his happiness with the presence of this “constellation” of works dear to his heart in central London and in the prestigious Christie’s House. The reason behind the passion is “the love of sharing”: “I love sharing my passion for art with others.” He recalls a meeting with former US President Bill Clinton and a sentence that remained with him following the meeting: “He told me: If you love something, you must share it with others, and if you want to preserve something, share it with others.”
“The Village” by Engy Aflatoun (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Al-Qasimi returns more than once to express his love for Arab culture and his pride in the region. He talked regarding his interest in Arab women and their rights (the group shown gives female artists an equal status with men) and went beyond his goals to include minorities. “I hope that we can, through culture, embrace minorities, women, and different currents in our culture.”
On the inception of the Barjeel Foundation in 2010, he recalls the end of the nineties when he returned from France, where he studied, and visited an art gallery with his parents. His father began explaining the exhibited works, and that was the beginning of the passion for acquisition. “In the same year 2002, I bought the first artwork in my life.”
Barjeel evolved with every painting that Al Qasimi bought, and following the advice of friends, he applied to the Sharjah government for a place to house his collection. “After obtaining a place for exhibition in 2009, we held the first exhibition for Barjeel in 2010,” he considers his institution and its group as “a microcosm of the Arab world.”
He expresses his pride in the collection of artworks in the institution, “Barjeel is a dynamic, evolving and changing group. I believe that the group has become more in control of me than I am in control of it. Many universities and institutions send invitations to Barjeel more than they send to me. It has its own identity, for example on (Instagram) the number of my followers The Barjeel page has more followers than me, and I find that a joy for me.
The group’s own identity became the main factor when thinking regarding adding new works. “Sometimes I go to a commercial gallery and see works and think to myself, I love this work, but I also see that it is not consistent with the group’s DNA.” How does that explain “DNA”? He says that the “group’s DNA” is rooted in the modern Arab world and the formation of Arab identity.
“The Martyr’s Epic” by Kazem Haider (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Despite the expansion of the process of acquiring artworks (their number has reached 1,200), Al Qasimi does not see that he owns these works.
“I hate the word owner of the work. I think I have a responsibility to preserve the work. I see myself as a keeper of the artworks in the collection.”
Sultan Saud Al Qasimi
The facts
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Sultan Al Qasimi has collected 1,200 works of modern and contemporary art at the Barjeel Art Foundation, of which we see 100 at Christie’s.
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