Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
The art of a top Yemeni artist, offering a bird’s eye perspective on the rhythms that move the human soul, has flown back into Bahrain for his third solo exhibition in the kingdom.
The Infinity Hymns art exhibition, showcasing the work of Hakim Al Akel, was unveiled this week at the Art Concept gallery in Andalus Garden.
“In this series of paintings, I extract, from my memory, scenes that come in flashes of moments I lived, so I make the initial layouts as a key to the scroll,” the 58-year-old artist, who was born in Taiz, Yemen, told GulfWeekly.
Like many artists, Hakim’s paintings are a walk down memory lane stopping for a look at the hymns that touched his heart, but unlike most others, he employs a very distinct and unique perspective – that of a bird flying over these moments.
He began to dive deeper into the perspective in 2009, putting out his first series of works with this technique in 2010.
“My speciality in mural art helped me technically and literally in dealing with this perspective, controlling colour spaces, and adding semantic ornaments to the painting, helping you imagine yourself as an eagle flying, hunting what you see, and recreating the composition later,” he said.
“In these bird’s eye paintings, I fly into space to see everything without being watched. I move from one place to another, from closed rooms to mountaintops and into space. In these climates and imaginary rituals, I weave these worlds, relying on my craftsmanship of drawing, composition, and the spontaneity of colouring.
“Every painting I finish leads me to another. When I work on a couple of paintings with different topics, I transit and flow between them and lose the sense of time in deep contemplation, drawing, and finding the appropriate answers.”
Filled with bright colours and a sense of emotion-fuelled movement, Hakim’s pieces on display in this exhibition capture musicians and dancers in a flow state, colloquially known as being ‘in the zone’ – a mental state in which a person is fully immersed, feeling energised focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process.
He relies on childhood memories of Yemen, which he calls his ‘everlasting source’ of inspiration, as he weaves together reality and imagination, simplicity and complexity, and space and time in his paintings.
“All of my work experiences are about the Yemeni environment and culture, with its uniqueness and privacy inhabiting me as a series of memories,” he added. “The towering mountains, the hanging houses, the unique architecture, the mountain terraces that vary in colour across the seasons, and the movement of people and their apparel are all reflected in my artistic experience.
“I endeavour to convey all the moments of happiness, pain, and anticipation and turn all the moments of brokenness into an aesthetic discourse.”
All the 22 pieces exhibited in the exhibition were painted in 2023, using acrylic on canvas, and focus exclusively on musicians and dancers, whose beautiful movements and unity drive Hakim’s imagination wild.
“I want to transform these pieces of music into colourful lines charged with interaction – the sound combines with the melody, and the music of colour turns through shapes, hand gestures and facial expressions that sway with the tunes,” he explained excitedly.
“My memory contains many heart-warming scenes of dancers and musicians in popular markets.”
Hakim began his artistic journey at the age of 11, when he studied under Hashem Ali – one of the founding fathers of the modern artistic movement in Yemen.
Hakim studied art and murals at the Moscow State Academy, earning a master’s degree in art and murals as well as the history and theories of art. He went on to become a founding member of the Yemeni Plastic Artists’ Association in 1986, before teaching art at a number of universities in his home country.
Since 1997, he has served on a number of jury committees in art competitions, including as a member of the jury of the 35th Bahrain Annual Fine Arts Exhibition in the kingdom in 2008 and a member of the jury of the 2009 International Miniature and Decoration Festival in Algeria.
He has participated in multiple group exhibitions in Yemen, the Arab region, and various countries, including Russia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Britain, and China.
His first-ever solo exhibition was in 1992
at the Moscow Central Artist’s House.
In Bahrain, his first solo exhibition was at the Art Centre in 2013, followed by one at the Akkas Gallery in 2018.
“My art represents my experience as a person who loves beauty and peace, with a massive amount of memories and love for my country, in an attempt to instil positive energy into society,” he noted.
“Through art, the artist can bear the hardships of life, anticipate an honourable future, and make life better. Art brings people together and connects bridges.”
Infinity Hymns will continue until February 7, and is open from Sunday to Thursday, 10am to 6pm.
For more details, follow @ hakimalakel and @artconceptbh on Instagram.
