Tamer Al-Ahmar: The Jordanian artist paying homage to Arab divas
‘They are icons that have had a defining influence on our cultural identity’
The popular Amman-based digital artist Tamer AlAhmar’s work pays tribute to the great divas of Arabic music, including Asmahan, Sabah, Fairuz, Umm Kulthum, and Warda.
Al-Ahmar is the definition of a self-taught artist. Despite his childhood passion for drawing, he never really considered the possibility of turning it into a career. “In Jordan, there is a deeply rooted stereotype that is still undoubtedly upheld today, whereby one cannot make a living through art,” he explains. “I strongly believed that I had talent, but by no means did I take this interest seriously. I never took lessons or workshops to improve my skills.”
But in 2009, Al-Ahmar discovered the world of digital art. “In the beginning, I started drawing characters and caricatures of my friends. But gradually, by dint of working and experimenting, my talent developed and reached a professional level,” he says. “Afterwards, I went into the comic books industry”.
Four years later, Al-Ahmar began to carve out his niche. “This happened at a noteworthy time in my life. Back then I was starting to take a great interest in Arab culture, be it music, cinema or architecture,” he explains. He began drawing pictures of the much-feted late Syrian singer Asmahan, who ranks among the region’s most important cultural figures of the 20th century. “Asmahan bewitched me. Her destiny was fascinating, but also tragic,” Al-Ahmar says.
His drawings of Asmahan are equally bewitching. “I drew Asmahan based on my perception of her,” he says. “I did not replicate an original photo. That’s how my career truly started.”
He began sketching other hugely influential divas from the Arab world in a similar pop-art style, including Umm Kulthum, Warda, Fayrouz and
Sabah, as well as their male counterparts, including Omar Sharif and Farid Al-Atrash. But it is his portraits of women that have proven most popular.
“I thought a lot about drawing female artists. They are icons that have had a defining influence on our daily lives and on the construction of our cultural identity,” he says.
The artist believes that his international success, especially within the Arab diaspora in the United States and Australia, is based on two main factors: “The fact that people appreciate that I show
Arab culture in an attractive and pretty way, and my immense pride in this culture, which is naturally felt in my work.”
Al-Ahmar’s work has been recognized both locally and internationally. In 2018, the French Institute commissioned him to create the poster for Amman’s Franco-Arab Film Festival. In 2019, he participated in the prestigious Arab Conference at Harvard.
His work is currently on show in two galleries in Amman — the Jacaranda Gallery and the Ali & Rama Gallery. In 2019, he staged an exhibition at the Jacaranda Gallery named “Lessa Faker” (Do You Remember), after a song by Umm Kulthum.
Apart from its obvious nostalgic appeal, Al-Ahmar’s work remains timely and relevant — a sweet reminder of the far-reaching influence of women in Arab culture.