Girls of Dubai: Gulfography's First

"The Girls of Dubai are here!  As tribute to the Dubai exhibition 'Privately' that was the inspiration for founding Gulfography.com, we decided to make selected pictures from this exhibition as our first official gallery.  All photos in this collection are taken by female photographers based in Dubai. It was my pleasure to to share their work with all those who stopped by the Gallery of Light in Dubai and now we want share it with the rest of the world.  Below is an excerpt from my statement as the curator of the exhibition.  It will give you insight into what strings these amazing collection of photos together."             

--Shammi Samano (co-founder of Gulfography)  

  

"On Curating the Private"

I’ve lived a lot of places…too many actually.  I’ve called everything from Iraq to the U.S. to Egypt to Spain and now the UAE my “home” for some period of time or another.  And when you first arrive somewhere new, you’re immediately drawn to the most obvious cultural traits that differentiate this place from all the other places you’ve been.

What fascinated me since I first arrived in Dubai three years ago was how thick the line separating the public and private was in local Emirati culture, much thicker than in the West. I saw this play out in the most obvious and subtle ways in the public culture at large but in a much more personal way with my students—all college-aged Emirati women.  Through our endless conversations and interactions, they’ve been my biggest teachers in trying to understand this particular cultural lesson.

Therefore, the theme of the this exhibition, “Private-ly”, was inspired after three years of being taught by my own students all the nuances of what the “public” and “private” means to them.  And more importantly, how they negotiate their lives according to the rules that govern the world of the private and those that govern what is allowed to spill over into the world of the public. 

In preparing for this exhibit, I asked my photography students to artistically explore what is personally private to them and then share it in the very public space of an art gallery with the hope that this would give us all an opportunity to reflect on that separation and its consequences. Ultimately, I believe that it is only by exploring the intensely personal that we can even begin to understand larger social dynamics. Hence, the use of the Arabic "ly" in the title—denoting something that belongs to someone.

We hope you enjoy this small photographic journey into the private world of the girls of Dubai…

 

 

Saudi's new breed of artists push the limits

By Rima Maktabi, Jon Jensen, CNN and Catriona Davies, for CNN

March 7, 2012

Part of a series of portraits of professional Saudi women -- a doctor, an architect and a TV producer among them. The debate about what jobs are suitable for women "irrational," says Al-Dowayan.

Three hundred women at sessions around Saudi Arabia wrote their names on maplewood balls for Al-Dowayan's "Esmi (My Name)," which challenges the Saudi taboo that prevents men from saying the names of women in their lives.

The wooden balls were then strung up, resembling prayer beads, at the Edge of Arabia contemporary art show in Jeddah.

The installation features 3,600 microphones. Angawi hopes to place them around the streets of Jeddah for a year to pick up what people are saying.

On show at Edge of Arabia (on the back wall), the artwork is made from 3,000 plastic cap gun discs. Mater says people in Saudi are afraid to talk, but adds that freer expression should come as part of a gradual change.

The conceptual artist invited gallery goers at Edge of Arabia to move these cautionary signs to wherever they wanted on a map of the world.

From Riyadh, Mullah is known for her use of symbolic and real imagery to give her slant on life in Saudi, like this wall installation on display at Edge of Arabia.

'I Am A Petroleum Engineer,' Manal Al-Dowayan

'Esmi (My Name),' Manal Al-Dowayan

'Esmi (My Name),' Manal Al-Dowayan

'Street Pulse,' Ahmed Angawi

'Cowboy Code,' by Ahmed Mater

'World Carpet,' Hamza Serafi

'Food for Thought 7200,' Maha Mullah

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (CNN) -- The woman in the photograph's face is almost entirely covered by an ornate mask-like piece of traditional Saudi jewelry. Almost like a niqab, it leaves only her eyes showing.

Perhaps surprisingly, she is also wearing an industrial hard hat and safety jacket, and the photo is called "I Am A Petroleum Engineer." It is one of a series by the Saudi artist Manal Al-Dowayan commenting on the jobs that Saudi women do.

"We have this debate in Saudi about women's employment, and some people say women should only work in jobs that 'suit their nature,'" said Al-Dowayan.

"It's a completely irrational discussion because who decides what suits their nature? I started photographing amazing women working in all kinds of jobs to show that the argument is invalid." Saudi art is absolutely booming

 

Manal Al-Dowayan, artist

Other photos in the "I Am" series feature a Saudi woman doctor, computer engineer, TV producer, scuba diver, architect and interior decorator, all in similar poses with their faces partly covered.

Al-Dowayan challenges Saudi customs in other works too. For "Esmi (My Name)," she asked hundreds of women to write their names on wooden balls, which she strung from the ceiling. It was her way of breaking taboo that prevents men from saying the names of women in their lives.

Despite the controversial nature of her work, Al-Dowayan says she has had very little negative reaction at home.

"Whenever I do a work, people around me and my galleries get very worried, but in reality there's incredible room for dialogue in Saudi Arabia.

"These are issues that have been discussed many times, and I'm just bringing them into contemporary art," she said.

Al-Dowayan is one of 17 Saudi artists featured in the Edge of Arabia exhibition, which this year was shown in Jeddah for the first time after appearing in cities around the world since 2008. It is the first major contemporary art exhibition ever shown in Saudi Arabia.

"Saudi art is absolutely booming," she said.

This is Saudi. We need to speak the culture of the art where it is

Ahmed Angawi, artist

Many artists are gently pushing at boundaries and limits of expression in the socially conservative country.At Edge of Arabia, Ahmed Angawi built a giant ball from 3,600 microphones. He wants to place the microphones out on the streets of Jeddah, his home city, for a year to collect people's random thoughts."In my mind, I was thinking, if I gave a microphone to Jeddah, what would Jeddah say?" he said. "What would it express?"

"You need to talk and engage to get people involved to evolve as a society. People are afraid of talk. Much more, we should be afraid of silence."But, he says, freer expression in Saudi will come as part of a gradual change."I firmly believe in change. But I firmly believe (in) change with an essence. You want it to be very natural. Sometimes fast change will affect people wrongly in the region."

The Edge of Arabia show came under the banner We Need to Talk, and was aimed at encouraging dialogue between artists and the community.

"Our aim is to deliver a message," said curator Mohammed Hafiz, 36. "We want to let the world know what Saudi Arabia is all about, through the eyes of its artists. We know that we have a voice that we want people to listen to. We have thoughts and experiences to share."

People are pushing the limits, but doing it step by step so people don't get a big shock at once
 

Alaa Balkhly, designer

Beyond Edge of Arabia, there are signs that the art scene is on the up and not afraid to say what it thinks.

Alaa Balkhy, a 23-year-old designer running a business called Fyunka, selling bags, T-shirts and notebooks, believes that Saudis are finally becoming proud of their own arts and culture.

"People are starting to appreciate each other within Saudi society and the art scene," she said. "If you see something made in Saudi people relate to it now. "It's very new. It's growing and it's amazing how fast it's growing

.

"We are trying to put a positive Saudi on the map. We really want to change the stereotype, and step by step we are doing it."

Balkhy's first design was a bag called "Daddy I want a Birkin," an ironic nod to Saudi's love of shopping for luxury goods, such as the expensive Hermes Birkin bag. Her designs are now sold through an online boutique in London, as well as in nine Gulf countries.

She said: "People are pushing the limits, but doing it step-by-step so people don't get a big shock at once.

"We don't have much freedom of expression or freedom of speech, but it's amazing how people are saying what they want to say through social media and blogs, whether it's a video, a YouTube show, an article, a design piece or an artwork.

"People will always find a way to express themselves. It's human nature to want to say what's on your mind."If people can't express themselves directly, they will do it indirectly."

In addition to the limits to expression, Balkhy faces practical restrictions through the ban on women driving and the guardianship laws, which means she must get permission from her father to travel and for many other daily activities.

"There are a lot of challenges to running a business when you are a girl in Saudi," she said. "I imagine it would be easier if I could drive, but I'm proud that I've achieved so much without.

"My dad gives me all the permission to travel I need, but it saddens me that some girls have so much potential to creating something, but their families and society are so limiting.

"I'm 23 and my little brother is 18, but in Saudi he is a grownup and I'm not."

Young upstarts plotting Mid East art revolution

By Catriona Davies, CNN

May 22, 2012 -- Updated 0911 GMT (1711 HKT)

 

This week's Young Collectors Auction, in Dubai, includes a number of young artists who could be stars of the future.

Lara Zankoul's photography consists of surreal compositions she recreates from her imagination, rather than an attempt to capture reality.

This photograph, "Excess," shows the irrelevance of the water in the watering can compared to the sea.

Editor's note: Each month, Inside the Middle East takes you behind the headlines to see a different side of this diverse region.

(CNN) -- Lara Zankoul and Lara Atallah are both young Lebanese photographers taking their first steps in promising artistic careers.

Their work, however, could hardly be more different. While Atallah focuses on the gritty reality of life in urban Beirut, Zankoul's images are whimsical and surreal, created from her imagination.

They are both among the latest emerging artists to be featured in the Young Collectors Auction run by Ayyam Gallery in Dubai.

The auction, held on Tuesday (May 15), featured 75 lots from 63 emerging and established Middle Eastern artists, 10 of them aged 30 or under.

Ayyam Gallery has been running Young Collectors Auctions since 2008, aimed at supporting emerging artists and opening the art market to new collectors. Almost all the works had estimates well below $10,000, with most in the region of $2,000 to $3,000.

There's no such thing as the right time to start out as an artist, it takes a lot of determination
Lara Atallah "The art market here is quite young and people are interested in buying art, but intimidated by the gallery scene and auctions," said Hisham Samawi, Ayyam's auctioneer.

"We wanted to start something with a relaxed atmosphere, lower estimates and young emerging artists."

The recipe has been a success and Ayyam has just run its 13th Young Collectors' Auction. The latest raised a total of $550,000.

Samawi believes Middle Eastern art could be on the verge of an explosion similar to that seen in the Chinese and Indian art markets in recent years.

"There's great art in this region and internationally it's undervalued," he said. "There has been a steady increase in prices and this is just the beginning. Politically there's so much going on and that's reflected by artists."

Here we feature 10 emerging Middle Eastern artists aged 30 or under from the Ayyam Young Collectors Auction who could be names to watch out for in the future.

"Excess" by Lara Zankoul of Lebanon

1. Lara Zankoul, Lebanon, born 1987

Zankoul, 24, studied economics at university and only began photography as a hobby in 2009.

"Over time the hobby grew and grew and became an obsession," she said. "I promoted my work through social media and gradually started to gain more followers and feedback and eventually freelance projects."She held her first exhibition collective two years ago and is part of Ayyam's incubator program. Zankoul's photography consists of surreal compositions she creates from her imagination, rather than an attempt to capture reality.

"I like to create worlds of my own. A lot of work goes into setting up the scene," said Zankoul, who once dragged a bed into the sea for a photograph. For now, she still works full time as an economic researcher alongside her photography.

 

From the "Abandoned School" series by Lara Atallah of Lebanon

2. Lara Atallah, Lebanon, born 1989

Atallah, 22, captures the gritty reality of urban Beirut in her photography, aiming to tackle social problems.She had just graduated in graphic design from the University of Beirut last year when she got her break entering a competition organized by Ayyam Gallery. Her entry was a series of photographs of an abandoned school building.

"Photography is a means, not an end," said Atallah. "The ideas I like to get across do not get much attention from artists and people in general."

Other subjects she has tackled include the destruction of Beirut's architectural heritage, and street vendors and their makeshift shelters.

"There's no such thing as the right time to start out as an artist, it takes a lot of determination," said Atallah. "But since I've started I've discovered a lot of different artists from this region. There's a very rich art scene."

"Palestinian Girl Recites Qur'an Verses In A Mosque" by Eman Mohammed of Gaza

3. Eman Mohammed, Palestinian Territories, born 1989

Mohammed says she is the only Palestinian woman working as a photojournalist in Gaza and says she has faced prejudice over her career choice.She began covering the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as a teenager in 2006 and has gained an international reputation for her work, which includes images of air strikes, funerals of militants, and Gaza's deep-sea fishermen.

Mohammed won the 2009 Carmignac Gestion Judges' Special Prize, received an honorable mention in UNICEF's 2009 Photo of the Year contest and has been part of collective exhibitions in the United States, Canada, Israel, Ireland and the Netherlands.

"Suggested Package 5 + 1 Group" by Babak Kazemi of Iran

4. Babak Kazemi, Iran, born 1983

Kazemi, a graphic-design graduate, makes unusual and often surreal photographic collages. His work includes vintage-style sepia photographs superimposed with brightly colored Disney images of Mickey and Minnie Mouse.He experiments with a technique called petroleum printing, involving immersing collages in petroleum products.

5. Saeed Salem, Yemen, born 1984

Salem, of Yemeni descent, was born in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and -- after studying abroad -- has set up a photographic studio there called 181 Degrees.In his series Neonland, he explores the bright lights of Jeddah's cosmopolitan city center. In exhibition publicity he said: "These neon kiosks are a symbol of Jeddah ... they are iconic and you only find them in this city ... It's like a mini hypermarket.

"To me, they symbolize both the old Arabic culture: a place to meet and talk; as well as something 

 very futuristic."

"Syrian Child" by Abdalla Omari of Syria

6. Abdalla Omari, Syria, born 1986

Painter and filmmaker Omari, from Damascus, is one of the few people on this list already working full-time as an artist.Omari has made and collaborated in animation films, series and video arts and took part in the 2010 Damascus International Cinema Festival.

7. Ali Taptik, Turkey, born 1983

Taptik, from Istanbul, is working on a Masters thesis on the history of architecture and taught himself photography.

His series "Accident and Fate" is a narrative on urban life, exploring relationships, places, people, emotions and coincidences.

"Untitled" by Navid Azimi Sajadi of Iran

8. Navid Azimi Sajadi, Iran, born 1982

Sajadi, who describes himself as an iconoclast, works through painting, photography, installation and sculpture.He uses symbols from his Iranian heritage as well as Middle Eastern stereotypes shown in Western media.

9. Rhea Karam, Lebanon, born 1982

Rhea Karam was born in Beirut, grew up in France and is now based in New York, where she graduated from the International Center of Photography.She has exhibited internationally and won awards including the Best of Show at the 2011 Colorado Photographic Arts Center juried exhibition.

10. Lamya Gargash, United Arab Emirates, born 1982

Gargash's photographs document the forgotten public and private spaces in Emirati society and capture the notion of hospitality and the politics of interior design.As well as taking part in numerous photography exhibitions, Gargash has won awards for her film-making. Gargash was the featured artist at the inaugural UAE Pavilion of the Venice Biennale in 2009.

Link to Article: http://edition.cnn.com/2012/05/18/world/meast/middle-east-artists-future/index.html?hpt=imi_t5

Bandaging Your Pain

"Bandaging Your Pain" by Hessa Butti Al Shuwaihi

"The story of the girl in this photo is that she is trying to hide her grief and sadness by putting on makeup and wearing the most luxurious jewelry, but others still seem to notice the pain that shows on her face. So she decides to bandage her face entirely to hide these feelings from the world" Hessa Butti Al Shuwaihi