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The oft-overlooked art school of Surrealism is taking centre stage at a new exhibition in Bahrain and its master artist hopes that the pieces inspire a deeper appreciation for details amongst art aficionados.
The ‘Forgotten School’ art exhibition is now on show at the Colours of the East gallery in Arad and features works by a dozen artists of the Showaiter Art Group.
“We are a group of more than 80 artists and each member submitted an idea for their piece at the beginning of this year,” Khalifa Showaiter, 50, the primary curator and mentor to the other participating artists, told GulfWeekly.
“This came after we led a workshop exploring the roots of surrealism and some of its most iconic artists. Each artist then researched the themes within their piece.
“It was only after all that research did paint touch the canvas. We did not limit anyone in terms of mediums and the most surprising thing is that these artists are mostly in their 20s, with skills at par with veterans.”
A total of 50 art pieces are on display at the exhibition, which got its name from the fact that surrealism is often forgotten when looking at the art movements in Bahrain.
While a majority of the art pieces created by students in the exhibition were for this showcase, there are also pieces previously created.
For example, Khalifa’s piece Hope 2 had won him the coveted Al Dana Prize at the Bahrain Annual Fine Arts Exhibition in 2009.
It is showcased in this exhibition alongside a follow-up piece My Diary 2, borrowing some of the same motifs.
“Hope 2 is an autobiographical piece painted at an uncertain time in my career when I was becoming successful as an artist, but wasn’t sure where to go with it,” Khalifa explained, during a tour of the exhibition.
“And My Diary 2 came more recently when I found my place in the art world and gained a new perspective on my journey.”
Hope 2 is painted against a backdrop of the desert and the sea, reflecting how Khalifa was torn between staying here and travelling to expand his influence as an artist.
On the other hand, My Diary 2 is set against the two seas that make up Bahrain, reflecting his decision to derive art from, in and around his homeland, Bahrain.
Another tripartite of untitled paintings might seem, at first glance, to be a riff on the three wise monkeys maxim, which embodies the philosophy of seeing no evil, hearing no evil and speaking no evil.
“It actually reflects the expectations society places on men, women and children,” Khalifa explained.
“As I see it, men are often told to be modest by not looking at temptation, children’s ears are shielded from hearing any profanities and many women have their voice suppressed.”
Most of the pieces are introspective. Yassir Syed’s (Instagram: @yas.s90) Unexplainable Babble reflects ideas that embody his personality.
“The clock within this piece shows my date of birth, with its hour, minute and second hands, while the blindfolded person reflects how I find it difficult to see life in colours beyond black and white,” the artist explained.
Meanwhile, Zubaida Janahi (Instagram:
@zubaida.janahi) uses three paintings to depict different stages of intimacy from infatuation to heartbreak. They are titled Yearning, Mirage of Love and Dropped Mirage.
“Each painting also has a candle burning to reflect how passion can burn out in a relationship,” she added.
The exhibition is being run under the patronage of Bahrain National Arts Council chairman Shaikh Rashid bin Khalifa Al Khalifa until September 22.
Follow @coebahrain and @showaiter.art.group on Instagram for details.
