TheBreakdown
The Saudi artist discusses his conceptual artwork, recently displayed at Art Dubai through Jeddahbased Hafez Gallery, fueled by the theme of modernday consumerism. Rashed Al-Shashai — ‘Brand 14’
I come from an academic background; even though I loved art before I loved academia. I grew up in a village and, at one point, my father was an art educator. From an early age, he gave me the confidence to make art and I used to design things in the house. I graduated with degrees in art in Makkah and
I’ve now been teaching art for around 20 years.
I’m one of those people that likes to think outside the box. I don’t like traditional art. In the past few years, I’ve leaned towards using art as a medium of expression, knowledge, enlightenment and an embodiment of things that affect our daily lives.
In the Gulf, we are living in a time of rapid development, which is due to the presence of oil and people’s need to have a better quality of life. This rapid change leads to changes in different aspects of life, including art. I always focus on change in its social and collective context. I’m always keen that my work is visually attractive and conceptually deep.
My ‘Brand’ series discusses how humanity has been cheapened in the face of global organizations and world economic trade. I’m not against organizations, but
I’m against organizations taking advantage of people. A person has become cheap — like a second-or third-class citizen. It’s like you’re telling a person that you’re just a number in this organization. The problem isn’t the consumer; it’s these organizations that are brainwashing us. People have this stunning will to buy. They’re always working on this idea that you work to buy a new television; you work to buy a new car. In “Brand 14,” I focused on the consumption of cleaning and decorating products as seen on supermarket shelves. The cases in the front are made of plastic, which were used as supermarket crates. I’ve used light in many of my works. As you can see here, I always place light in the background of the artwork and not in the front. Light isn’t there just to see the work, but it is a main component. I feel that light has a filtering that creates another story.
I’m not against organizations, but I’m against organizations taking advantage of people. A person has become cheap.