
I saw an amazing TED talk tonight about how Google had created a master piece of searchable art, where one can find any art in any form since it was created. (Every piece of art you’ve ever wanted to see — up close and searchable
I am not an artist nor a curator or an art historian! I am just an art lover who truly believes that a picture is worth a thousand words. My challenge is always to try and write those thousand words about every picture that I see.
So, what I’m going to show you today is not located in London, Paris, Rome or Amsterdam! It’s not the work of Monet, Rembrandt, Picaso, Daly or Michael Angelo, but the work of simple artists living in a simple place called Bani Jamra or if one tries to translate the place’s name “the children of a burning charcoal”, and a burning charcoal place it is. It is located in Bahrain, which is the country of over a thousand artists known and unknown. Bahrain is avid with artwork and people who love art! Its a country that is as passionate about art as its passionate about food, culture, music and many other things that can make the country full of visitors from around the globe but it is not promoted in that way.
When I moved back to my country after 35 years of living a full life in other countries I thought that I would be isolated and I may not find living here as worthwhile as it was in those other places, but I was overly mistaken! This place is full of little surprises that one can never have enough of.
Back to Bani Jamra! 16 artists gathered and decided that they must shape their world by creating murals for the connoisseurs to feast their eyes on. These artists spent days and nights to complete over 60 murals that are completed with passion similar to those found in the best and worst streets of the world. the only criticism that I may have is that all of the artists are impressionists and they missed to call the surrealist, contemporary and others that are also existing in Bahrain
One may not think that a small country like Bahrain can give birth to the artists that could be known in the future and will be featured by many important magazines and tv stations. But, my opinion is that it will be known and we will all remember them along with many others that will be born in the place that I would like to call the village of culture
Enjoy the art and hope to see you and hope to see these murals searchable by Google.