Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Bahraini artist Khalid Fairooz, has unveiled his first-ever solo exhibition in his home country, taking inspiration from nature and his family to create a series of oil paintings.
The 66-year-old artist’s showcase, titled Breeze, opened last week at the Mashq Art Space in Al A’Ali Mall, and is set to conclude tomorrow.
“I love and always look for a connection with it through my artistic work,” Khalid told GulfWeekly at the opening of the exhibition, being held under the patronage of Member of Parliament Dr Hassan Bokhammas.
More than 20 pieces are being showcased during the nine-day exhibition, much of which feature abstract floral themes.
Most of them are recent creations, although the artist has been active since 1989.
“I have been active in the UAE for much of my career, teaching and creating art,” Khalid added. “I have held exhibitions in UAE throughout the 1990s but I took a break from them for a while as I continued to teach, study and travel. It’s only after I settled back in Bahrain that I was able to resume my artistic activity.”
Khalid participated in a number of art exhibitions, before his break, including a few affiliated with the Fine Arts Society of Sharjah, as well as the International Biennale Exhibition in Sharjah and the Flower Exhibition held in Dubai in 2003. He was also the supervisor of drawing courses at the Emirates Society for Fine Arts as well as the Nahda Association of Women in Dubai and the Institute of Fine Arts in Sharjah.
Khalid graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Damascus University in 1987, and also studied Spanish through Spanish language courses in UAE and Spain.
“I was only 10 when I started drawing using just a pencil and a paper,” he added.
“I started with realistic pieces, but after I experimented with abstraction, I fell in love with it.
“There’s more magic in oil too, because you can really feel the painting come alive.”
Khalid’s process involves working on as many as three or four paintings at a time, switching between them as inspiration strikes. One of his pieces in this exhibition is titled Jasmine, depicting the eponymous flower, and was inspired by his daughter Yasmine.
“With these pieces, I have tried to express a variety of emotions,” he added.
“For example, in one of them, I heavily rely on the colour yellow to express joy. When I start to paint a piece, I draw inspiration from whatever is around me, and then blend in realism, impressionism or abstraction to distil it onto the canvas.”
Breeze ends tomorrow at the Mashq Art Gallery.
