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One of Bahrain’s top sculptors is being celebrated on the international stage with the unveiling of his latest piece at the newly-launched Green Corner building in historic Muharraq.
Khalid Farhan’s Planets in the Sky sculpture is the backdrop of shots of Shaikha Hala bint Mohammed Al Khalifa taken by Bahraini photographer Ali Sharaf and featured, as part of Vogue Arabia’s February cover profiling cultural diplomacy in the region.
“I’m incredibly honoured to create this piece since it pays homage to my home town Muharraq, the Kingdom of Bahrain and to the global interconnectedness of humanity,” Khalid told GulfWeekly.
“The design for this piece was inspired by planets in the solar system. I wanted the interconnectedness of the planets in the sky to reflect love and interrelation amongst humans.”
The 43-year-old artist’s sculpture is the latest in a long line of creations dispersed across the kingdom and the region.
Working as a sculptor in wood, stone, brass and bronze, Khalid is inspired by the fundamental opposition of positive and negative forces in nature.
The writings of Austrian neurologist and founder of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud are central to his inspiration and work, in particular the opposition and integration of the feminine and the masculine.
Planets in the Sky reflects his use of the repetitive spherical shapes contrasted by a triangular incision, with each hemisphere expressing a different facet of the internal world of humans.
“I’m truly honoured to be able to represent my country on the global stage in this fashion,” he added.
Khalid found his artistic calling early and pursued his study of fine arts in Egypt in 1997.
Since then, he has exhibited prolifically throughout the region, Europe and Asia and is a regular participant in international sculpture symposiums.
His most famous work, The Legend, a 10-metre long wooden sculpture, is on display at the main entrance of the Bahrain National Museum.
He is also hoping to be part of the Bahrain Pavilion currently being showcased in Muharraq and set to be staged at the Dubai Expo 2020 later this year.
And his talent now has a new audience, as the interview of Shaikha Hala, alongside images of his sculpture, is being devoured by readers worldwide.
The February cover of the magazine pays homage to diplomacy and unity efforts by key cultural royal leaders from across the region, including Shaikha Hala – the perfect stage for Khalid’s motif of human oneness.
Visit www.kfarhan.com for more details.
