A TRIO of talented teenagers have shared their creative course work with family and friends in a stunning exhibition recently staged at St Christopher’s senior school campus in Isa Town.
For the past two years IB Diploma Visual Arts students Farian Anwar, Dena Dabbas and Noora Khan have poured their hearts and soul onto creating large canvases using of an array of colours, mediums and brush strokes. The week-long MMXIV 2014 IB Visual Arts exhibition, which was inaugurated by the president of the Bahrain Arts Society, Ali Al Mahmeed, gave the soon-to-be-graduates the opportunity to feature their artistic exploration to the public. Joe Mulleague, an IB examiner and the girls’ art teacher, is proud of how far they have come and was thrilled to share their ‘exceptional’ art work with others. He said: “Their highly-impressive and diverse body of work is beautiful, emotive, haunting and challenging. “I’m very proud of them, particularly of the fact that they were willing to take risks in their work. They also faced their own particular challenges with real tenacity. For example, Dena worked tremendously hard on the technical aspects of the subject and Noora had a confidence issue because she had taken a two-year hiatus from her art education. “It really was a privilege to teach these girls because they were always working with you, never against you. They were so receptive to ideas and had a great work ethic and dynamic, as well as being great friends.” Giant white walls were lit and covered in large oil and acrylic paintings showcasing vibrant textured art through the use of various mediums such as print making. Farian, 18, from Saar, focused on her cultural heritage exploring texture and overlapping images, both of which have become prominent features in her work. The Bangladeshi, who carries a US passport, has always had a passion for art. She aims to continue on her path of art education at university level as she would like to pursue a career in architecture. Farian said: “I think IB Art has allowed me to be more creative and express myself in different ways. It allowed me the chance to explore a range of techniques and ideas, through the theme ‘Me, Myself and I’.” For the first year of the course, she focused on ‘Bangladesh’. She was inspired by a range of artists including Anselm Kiefer, Robert Rauschenberg and Zainul Abedin. One painting in particular stood out, showcasing the nation’s flag and what migrant workers in Bahrain could carry in their pockets from panadol, keys and coins. She eventually made a transition from her initial theme to ‘Sense of Place’ where she explored the various places and people that relate to her life. Farian added: “The most rewarding aspects of the course include the skills that I developed such as print-making and painting techniques, as well as the confidence I have in showing more expressive approaches to artwork as opposed to focusing on conventional modes of depiction. “Through researching further into the themes I chose, I was able to make a stronger connection to my ethnicity, making me reflect more on my cultural identity.” Her friend Dena, 17, from Saar, also dabbled in her Palestinian ethnicity which put her through an emotional roller-coaster ride. She explained: “Inspiration for my initial pieces came from the political issues in my homeland. My aim was to produce art to prompt the viewers to consider more carefully the physical and emotional experiences of the victims on both sides of the conflict. “During the second year of the course, my theme branched out to broader reflections on violence and conflict. This is where I gradually overcame what I had previously regarded as my weakness as an artist and embraced it to become my strength.” Her growing confidence in her work was partly due to artist Guy Denning. His expressive and energetic mark-making has been a significant influence within her pieces, whereas the dark and sombre tones of Kathe Kollwitz’s work influenced her style whilst dealing with the sensitive political issues of Palestine. Dena added: “My developing independence as an artist prompted me to take more risks and use processes and mediums that I had to yet explore, such as graphite, conté and experimenting with different backgrounds. “Overall, the most rewarding aspect of the course was developing my own distinctive artistic identity, which I hope is an effective synthesis of powerful expression with a more mature command of skill and techniques.” Noora, 17, from Saar, took a different artistic route, focusing on current media and her love of rap music. She found inspiration in artists such as Chuck Close, an American painter and photographer who achieved fame as a photorealist through his massive-scale portraits. For example, through Close, Noora painted an oversized pixelated picture of one of her favourite rappers, Big Sean. Up close, it looks like tiny boxes of grey, black and white. But take a step back and his face magically appears. Her other paintings featured other famous rappers including Drake, Jay-Z and 2Pac. Noora said: “At the beginning, I looked inwards for inspiration from my deep-rooted passion for rap, but as I grew as an artist, I looked outwards, exploring the ongoing political issues in Bahrain on a deeper level. However, I focused on the positives such as unity, peace and togetherness. “Due to the fact that I had limited experience with much of the media available to me, I was keen to experiment with materials and techniques at an early stage in the course. I used a range of media and mastered techniques such as reduction printing and stenciling. “My growth throughout the course has shown me that I now have the ability to face a blank canvas with a breadth of skills and concepts under my wing to present ideas in my own way.” Noora originally thought she too would pursue a career in architecture, but after looking within herself she is now planning on taking international relations at university and is considering law school. Meanwhile, Dena aims to take urban planning and design at university. That is what the Diploma Programme visual arts course aims at achieving. It is meant to engage the students in both practical exploration and artistic production through independent contextual, visual and critical investigation. The course, which features a Higher Level (HL) and Standard Level (SL), permits young artists to study visual arts in higher education and also welcomes those students who seek life enrichment through visual arts. There is an Option A and an Option B course. All three teens took Option A, which according to Mr Mulleague, most students do. In the 240-hour HL and the 150-hour SL Option A course, 60 per cent of a student’s grade is valued on studio work and 40 per cent on the investigation workbook. All three teens took Option A courses with Farian and Dena opting for HL while Noora took on SL. The highest grade they could get is a 7, while the lowest is a 1. In the past, examiners from all over the world would meet the students to evaluate their work. Mr Mulleague, for example, used to examine students at different schools in Bahrain. However, now, work is sent for evaluation electronically due to the abundance of art students. Mr Mulleague said: “Their studio work pictures are uploaded along with pdfs of selected work book pages, a pdf of their candidate statement and a 15-minute video file of their interview. “The candidate interview gives the students a chance to explain their paintings to the examiner while also sharing who they are as individuals.” On close inspection, visitors to the art show could see at first-hand how the three candidates had truly outdone themselves in colour and texture and their work deserved a gallery-style presentation.
