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ONE of Bahrain's most celebrated artists Jamal Abdul Rahim is preparing to display his latest work at the prestigious Art Dubai exhibition and is planning a special solo show in the kingdom later this year where his latest creations will be unveiled.
The award-winning artist's name is synonymous with the regional talent who have made their mark on the international art scene.
He was the first Bahraini artist to sell his work at the internationally-renowned auction house, Christies. The 150cm by 200cm canvas titled Blue sold for around $7,000 in 2006 which was more than Christie's estimated price of between $4,000 to $6,000.
Jamal started dabbling with paints almost two decades ago after which he branched into print-making and during the last three years he has been sculpting his artistic ideas in stone and bronze.
Cold stone takes life under his able hands as he cuts, cleans and polishes his sculpture to perfection. Women's bodies inscribed with Arabic letters, clean flowing lines of the Arabic letter 'meem', 'alif', 'noon', birds in motion, abstract form ... all give a new dimension to the various stones he chooses to work on, be they the yellow and green onyx from Pakistan, black galaxy granite or the carrara from Italy.
"Stone is a beautiful medium to work in and I personally love working with black galaxy granite as it is the hardest stone in the world," says the gifted artist who creates sculptures from one-and-a-half tonne stone piece to much smaller works of art.
Jamal has probably the largest print-making workshop in the Gulf and has made close to 25 hand-made books which have been part of many roving exhibitions all over the region.
A non-conformist, Jamal is self taught. "I don't belong to any artistic school of thought. My heart is my compass and my environment and experiences give me inspiration and fan my creativity.
"I draw heavily from the language and my work is oriental, Arabic and expressionist. If I'd had instruction in art I would have eventually cast myself in a frame and churned the same work year after year," says Jamal who dropped out from school when he was a teenager.
Jamal's objects d'art graces many private collections in Bahrain and certainly all over the Gulf. Horses in different forms are the focus of his latest collection of oil paintings, a subject that was his first topic of fascination when he began painting.
For an artist who has won many accolades - 13 national and international - in his career and whose art work sells for up to BD4,000 whereas his huge sculptors are priced up to BD40,000 he is refreshingly down to earth and does not surround himself with affluent trappings.
He lives in the old part of Muharraq near the bustling souq in a quaint house whose wooden door he has engraved himself with Arabic poetry. The narrow, dusty and unpaved street leading to his house is punctuated with potholes "This is where my roots are," he says unabashedly of his humble beginnings. His environment gives him inspiration which is why he lives in the midst of activity and is not divorced from the hustle and bustle of everyday Bahraini life.
"A stark white canvas scares me as I see so many things on it. I then start destroying it with colour. My most satisfying moment is when I've finished my work and after observing it, it involuntarily brings a satisfying smile to my face after which I put my signature on it. I like working in oils rather than acrylic as oil is longer lasting. And when you paint you want your work to live for a long time."
