JEDDAH: AFRA NAUSHAD
Saudi artist Ibrahim Khabrani has chosen to portray the purity of the silent innocence of women in his solo exhibition By Pass, currently running at Al-Alamia art gallery.
The exhibition opened this weekend to a full house of artists, buyers, enthusiasts and media under the patronage of Ambassador Mohammad Ahmed Al-Tayeb, director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Born in 1973, Khabrani who works as a government employee also holds a degree in fine arts, calligraphy and photography. He has been exhibiting his paintings extensively in the Kingdom since 1999 including Argentina, Bahrain, Kuwait, India, Iran, Qatar, Tunis, U.A.E., and Vienna.
He has been the recipient of many local awards, including winning first place in the Young Saudi Artists I competition in 2010.
His new solo exhibition, By Pass, is more than just the celebration of the identities of Muslim and/or Arab women. Although the artist has chosen to portray the female gender as more than just disguised under the veil of anonymity, the thread of over 27 works is stretched upon the imagination of uncovering the layers of this purposeful ambiguity.
By creating a collective identity of women — portraying them huddled in a group of more than two — what lacks in place of subject individuality, temporarily makes up in the use of a bright color palette that may provide the impetus for a viewer to observe more than can be revealed.
“The meaning of these women crowded together is not to be confused for my personal opinion but is an expression of togetherness. I’ve also experimented by playing on the visual aspects that was inspired by the shifts in use of color,” says Khabrani.
The exhibition is open for public viewing and will continue until the end of the week. All his artworks are also available for sale.