Best of art for Atta’a

“We are displaying 400 pieces of artwork by 125 different artists,” was Sarah White’s first response when asked about the Art for Atta’a exhibition that is being held at the Bait al Zubair museum till February 26. She attributes this participation to all the help she has had from the media, word of mouth, Facebook and Twitter.

“Our colleagues at the Omani Society for Fine Arts, too sent out e-mails.”  How did this charity initiative that first started in 2003 evolve?

“For years, it’s been a great platform for emerging as well as established artists. It is also an important fundraiser for the Dar al Atta’a charity. There has just been an increase in scale and visibility over the years,” she said.

Talking about the panellists and elaborating on the selection process, she said, “This year we were lucky to have British artist Dilywen Smith as part of the selection committee.”

Smith is a graduate of the Royal College of Art in London and is in the country on a special scholarship from the Delfina Foundation in London and the British Council Oman in association with the Omani Society for Fine Arts.

The other panellists are Shatha Abbas from Dar al Atta’a and Sarah herself. Together the three studied each entry and rejected about ten per cent of them.

Smith brought in a fresh perspective since he had never seen any Omani artwork before. While Shatha mostly chose works that appealed to her, Smith and Sarah’s technical knowledge helped set a bar.

According to Shatha, it was important to maintain this good standard. “We wanted the display to be more art than amateurish craft."

“We looked at the technical skills, the composition and the balance of the pieces, trying to make sure as many people get accepted as possible,” said Sarah.

“It is a great opportunity for amateur artists since their work is displayed alongside big names like Anwar Sonia, Nadar Mahmoud and Moosa Omar,” Shatha said.

“However, sometimes the story behind the artwork is as interesting as the piece itself,” she added as she spoke about a German artist who submitted his piece via Facebook.

This year the exhibition was inaugurated under the auspices of H H Sayyid Faisal bin Turki al Said, COO, Brand Oman Management Unit. At the opening, he burst paint-filled balloons with darts, splattering paint onto a canvas, thereby creating a very interesting work of art, which was auctioned at the end of the evening.

“Each opening night we try and do something special. Last year we had a sand artist,” said Sarah.

“The artwork at the exhibition is varied and diverse as are the mediums. We have abstract and realistic art, digital photography, ceramic work and wood carving on display,” she said.

Another aspect that has changed about the exhibition over the years is how the proceeds are used.

 “We want all the artists to get something out of the exhibition as well. And it is too huge an expectation from the artists to give their work away since in several cases it is their livelihood.

"We have ensured that they receive 50 per cent of the price of their artwork. However, donating the entire proceeds of the sale is an option available to them,” she said.