SAUDI ARABIA: Two Iranian sister artists, Afsaneh and Magda Khaliqi, display more than 70 pieces of their hand-made Islamic filigree artwork in Riyadh
Record ID:
188974
SAUDI ARABIA: Two Iranian sister artists, Afsaneh and Magda Khaliqi, display more than 70 pieces of their hand-made Islamic filigree artwork in Riyadh
- Title: SAUDI ARABIA: Two Iranian sister artists, Afsaneh and Magda Khaliqi, display more than 70 pieces of their hand-made Islamic filigree artwork in Riyadh
- Date: 1st May 2012
- Summary: RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA (APRIL 29, 2012) (REUTERS) HAND MADE ART WORK BY IRANIAN SISTERS AFSANEH AND MAGDA KHALIQI HANGING IN GALLERY CLOSE ON DETAIL IN ONE PIECE SHOWING ARABIC TEXT READING: "THERE IS NO GOD BUT ALLAH AND MOHAMMAD IS HIS PROPHET" (ONE'S CONFESSION INTO ISLAM) ARTWORK HANGING IN GALLERY MADE USING PURE GOLD AND NATURAL COLOUR DYES PAINTED WITH BRUSH MADE OF CAT HAIR VARIOUS OF IRANIAN ARTIST AFSANEH KHALIGHI EXPLAINING ONE OF HER PIECES TO SAUDI BUSINESSMAN AND SPONSOR OF EXHIBITION, SHEIKH ABDUL MOHSEN AL-HOKAIR AFSANEH AND MAGDA KHALIQI POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPHS WITH AL-HOKAIR AND OTHERS VISITING SHOW (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAUDI BUSINESSMAN AND SPONSOR OF EXHIBITION, SHEIKH ABDUL MOHSEN AL-HOKAIR, SAYING: "Honestly, I was very happy by what I saw from this Iranian artist, whose artwork we consider Islamic art of the highest calibre. It portrays our traditions, verses from the Holy Koran, which are a testament of all the love and peace in the Aab and Islamic worlds. This is something to be truly proud of." VARIOUS OF IRANIAN ARTIST AFSANEH KHALIQHI EXPLAINING HOW SHE PAINTS TO COUPLE, SAYS BRUSH SHE USES IS VERY THIN AND IT'S MADE OF CAT HAIR CLOSE ON AFSANEH'S FACE (SOUNDBITE) (English) IRANIAN ARTIST, AFSANEH KHALIQHI, SAYING: "I did many exhibition around the world, but Saudi Arabia is a choice because this country, Islam coming from this country, and it's not any country, not any Islamic country. That's why I like coming here and people they like my art, so that's always ... it's a nice place for my art." COUPLE LOOKING AT ARTWORK HANGING ON GALLERY WALL (SOUNDBITE) (English) AMERICAN CITIZEN LIVING IN RIYADH, ASAD RIZVI, SAYING: "These things are a real piece of art that a true artist actually spends a tremendous amount of time and effort to make such art." IRANIAN ARTIST MAGDA KHALIQHI, SISTER OF AFSANEH KHALIQHI, EXPLAINING ONE OF ART WORKS TO VISITORS AFSANEH KHALIQHI HOLDING MAGNIFYING GLASS AND SHOWING DETAILS OF FILIGREE ARTWORK HANGING IN GALLERY (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAUDI VISITOR TO EXHIBITION, REEM, SAYING: "I was really impressed by the great detail and beauty in the work, which were drawn using gold water and are extremely beautiful and impressive as Islamic art." IRANIAN ARTIST MAGDA KHALIQHI, SISTER OF AFSANEH KHALIQHI, SPEAKING TO SAUDI VISITOR VARIOUS OF VISITORS TO EXHIBITION LOOKING AT ARTWORK IRANIAN ARTIST MAGDA KHALIQHI, SISTER OF AFSANEH KHALIQHI, EXPLAINING ONE OF ART WORKS TO VISITOR EGYPTIAN VISITOR LOOKING AT CLOSELY AT DETAIL IN ARTWORK (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) EGYPTIAN VISITOR TO EXHIBITION, ABDUL-AZIZ MOHAMAD, SAYING: "The perspective from a distance is completely different from when I moved in closer, I found some amazing details -- very strange details, praise to God, it has so much creativity." PHOTOGRAPHER WITH PEOPLE AT GALLERY / EGYPTIAN ARABIC CALLIGRAPHER, TAHER AMARAH, SPEAKING TO A WOMAN (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) EGYPTIAN ARABIC CALLIGRAPHER, TAHER AMARAH, SAYING: "Afsaneh is this era's artist of Islamic calligraphy. There is no one like her, I have seen no one like her." VARIOUS OF DETAILS IN ONE FILIGREE (SOUNDBITE) (English) IRANIAN ARTIST, AFSANEH KHALIQHI, SAYING: "This art, it's not easy, that's why many artists they are not doing this art, that's why it's special and I want to keep this art in life because this stay from the past -- the old artists (left) it for us. I don't want people to forget that and I want to keep it in life, I want to teach to many students." VARIOUS OF ISLAMIC ART PAINTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) IRANIAN ARTIST, AFSANEH KHALIQHI, SAYING: "Why this art is expensive? Because it takes too much time, one art maybe take, in the day, 20 hour, 18 hours, just for one art and maybe five months, six months for just one. That's why expensive and using small details and with gold and, you know, everyone can not do this art, so special art have a special price." FILIGREE ARTWORK HANGING IN GALLERY CARD ON BACK OF ONE PIECE WITH ARABIC TEXT, READING: "PURE GOLD / PRICE 70,000 SR" (US18,665 dollars)
- Embargoed: 16th May 2012 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Saudi Arabia
- Country: Saudi Arabia
- Reuters ID: LVA1SBZUEH0MOOUYV4VK3JWR3W5W
- Story Text: Two Iranian sisters living in the Saudi capital recently brought their intricately handpainted Islamic filigree creations to a gallery situated in one of Riyadh's most iconic buildings.
The interior of the 52nd floor of the Kingdom Centre, Riyadh's tallest building, was decorated with more than 70 gold-framed artworks that reflected the tradition of Islamic calligraphy and filigree all in one.
Saudi businessman and sponsor of the exhibition, sheikh Abdul Mohsen al-Hokair, said the works were impressive.
"Honestly, I was very happy by what I saw from this Iranian artist, whose artwork we consider Islamic art of the highest calibre. It portrays our traditions, verses from the Holy Koran, which are a testament of all the love and peace in the Arab and Islamic worlds. This is something to be truly proud of," he told Reuters.
Sisters Afsaneh and Magda Khaliqi have been based in Saudi Arabia in recent years, and have established a reputation for themselves as two of the youngest people to engage in Islamic filigree artwork.
"I did many exhibition around the world, but Saudi Arabia is a choice because this country, Islam coming from this country, and it's not any country, not any Islamic country. That's why I like coming here and people they like my art, so that's always ... it's a nice place for my art," said Afsaneh.
The ancient filigree artform is revived in the sisters' intricate details, which they paint with pure gold water and natural dyes, such as saffron and diluted Arabic gum. They then paint with the colours using a thin brush made with -- in accordance with the artwork's traditions -- hair from the neck of a male cat.
The Arabic calligraphy representing verses from the holy Koran in the artworks is done by professional calligraphers.
"These things are a real piece of art that a true artist actually spends a tremendous amount of time and effort to make such art," said one visitor to the exhibition, American citizen Asad Rizvi who lives in Riyadh.
"I was really impressed by the great detail and beauty in the work, which were drawn using gold water and are extremely beautiful and impressive as Islamic art," said another visitor to the exhibition, Reem.
The more prominent artist amongst the sisters is Afsaneh. She said she became interested in this art form when she was 13 years old. Then, she was living in Iran and would spend many hours a day mastering the artform. She did not receive any professional training, but was keen to share her work with others to receive feedback and listen to old artists who had mastered filigree for advice.
She is now considered one of the key artists specialising in this art form across the Islamic world.
"Afsaneh is this era's artist of Islamic calligraphy. There is no one like her, I have seen no one like her," said the well-known Egyptian calligrapher Taher Amarah while attending the show.
Nicknamed "The Servant of the Koran" in her native Iran, Afsaneh is a lecturer at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Iran, through which she hopes to pass on this disappearing artform to young students.
"This art, it's not easy, that's why many artists they are not doing this art, that's why it's special and I want to keep this art in life because this stay from the past -- the old artists (left) it for us. I don't want people to forget that and I want to keep it in life, I want to teach to many students," she said.
The exhibition featured a range of artworks at varied prices -- some started at 8 SR (US2 dollars) while others were 20,000 Saudi riyals (US5,333 dollars) to 80,000 Saudi riyals (US21,332 dollars).
"Why this art is expensive? Because it takes too much time, one art maybe take, in the day, 20 hour, 18 hours, just for one art and maybe five months, six months for just one. That's why expensive and using small details and with gold and, you know, everyone cannot do this art, so special art have a special price."
The artist pair, who hope to open their own gallery in the future to showcase their work have previously exhibited their pieces in France, Britain, the United States and some other European, Asian and African countries. They plan to next take their work to the Saudi holy cities of Mecca and Medina. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None