ART IN THE ENVIRONMENT

Saleem Sakhi, an artist who finds himself lost in artistic inspiration all around everyday, recently held a solo exhibition at the Art & Soul art gallery at the Water Front mall, in Shatti Qurm, wherein he portrayed the multiple influences of the environment on his paintbrush.

The exhibition, held a fortnight ago, portrays various scenes of nature through the Kumma. His artworks of the kumma displayed the flora and fauna of Oman imprinted as designs on the Omani cap in many interesting hues. They were other installations that showcased wellknown cultural symbols of Oman.

The artist asserts that when everything around him become a source of inspiration, it turns the overall shape of his thoughts and becomes the main theme of his works. He has always sought to bring out that co-existence of him and the environment, the heritage and culture of Oman on his canvases which have always strayed off the beaten track.

Sakhi has participated in many art exhibitions in the sultanate and other countries where the scenes from Oman's culture are formatted into art of the rich environment overlapping the sensory and emotional constitution with a new vision and unique outcome.

His artworks are collected by some government and private institutions such as Ministry of Higher Education, Ministry of Regional Municipalities , Minister of Culture, Sport and Youth National Museum, Oman Museum Across Ages, Oman Petroleum Company, Bait Al Zubair, Omantel, UNESCO and other individual buyers.

The Art & Soul gallery is a platform where artists of all denominations can express their creativity and showcase it to the community. It offers enhanced exhibition settings, appropriate lighting and state of the art equipment to display artworks attractively.

This platform is a perfect venue for art talks, workshops and creative performances and artists can look forward to regular exhibitions, events and competitions, while the gallery hopes to bring other unique concepts of art to Muscat.

Sakhi, shares his thoughts on the exhibition which was well received:

What was the theme of the exhibition?

The exhibition was about the Omani environment in all its forms. That coexistence between me and, on the other hand, the environment, heritage and traditional costumes has always been a source of creativity and inspiration to me.

I was deeply influenced by the resettlement project of the Arabian Oryx in the sultanate to safeguard and to protect them from extinction. That project has become, for me personally, an obsessive issue prompting and inspiring me to create forms of Arabian Oryx paintings and sculptures as an attempt to remove them their barren environment to a world full of life and vitality

Why did you portray the kumma through this exhibition?

This has always been a subject brought to light by me.

I have been inspired by it to a great extent as we have a daily relationship with the kumma. This formed an artistic vision for my artworks on the kumma which are rich in various motifs that indicate our culture and traditions. I have always been fascinated by the kumma and so gave it a new identity on the canvas.

What features of the kumma appeal to you the most?

The kumma is an element that characterises men’s costume in Oman. It is an inspiration source for me because of what it carries - the various patterns and shapes. And I add a self-dimension to this repeated rhythm for the kumma with a variety in design that breaks away from the familiar ones.

What is your opinion on the evolving art scene and scope of artists in Oman?

The art scene and artists in Oman are constantly evolving and it works to stimulate the artistic offering to further progress. I myself have evolved as an artist over the years. As we go forward, cultural influences do affect our work as well as our approach to paintings. I have seen it in myself as well as other artists over the years.

Do you think different aspects of Oman’s culture deserve to be seen in exhibitions around the world?

What is around us - nature, heritage, or scenes of our daily life - are sources of inspiration for all artists, with a uniqueness that is peculiar to Oman alone. Therefore, the Omani artist must show this distinction in his/her artwork to rediscover these legacies with a modern vision.

That coexistence of me and the environment has always been a source of creativity and inspiration

SALEEM SAKHI