Bahraini painter Lulwa Al Khalifa finds it refreshing that there are no absolutes in art. According to her, art gives the freedom to explore her creativity and experiment with techniques. Bahrain This Week joins her to discover her take on the artistic process.
Tell us briefly about yourself: Where you were born, your educational background and so on.
I am a self-taught Bahraini painter who has never had a formal education in the arts. I graduated from Boston University with a BA in English Literature which was the perfect education for me because it made me appropriate that the arts took many forms. Be it visual arts or the art of the written word, all arts share a basic discipline in that they are created for an audience and they are only relevant if they are offered to a public who can resonate with them.
Were you initiated into arts and painting during your childhood?
Yes. My father was very artistic and he always sketched while I was growing up. He also appreciated my creativity and encouraged it. He would take us to museums from a very young age and instilled the importance of the arts in us.
Who has been your inspiration?
As I said my father was an early inspiration for me, and even today I wonder what he would think of my paintings. Other than that, the freedom of art itself inspires me. I feel that I am free to explore my creativity and experiment with my technique. I am inspired by the fact that everything is relevant in art if somebody believes that it is. The opinion of a layman to me is just as significant as that of an expert because at the end of the day both remain opinions. There are no absolutes in art and all expertise remains subjective. I find that very refreshing.
Tell us about the significance of art in your life.
Art is very cathartic for me. I am able to express myself through my paintings. Each work has a story behind it. A story that I share when I’m asked but I don’t offer to people unsolicited. I believe that the connection between the artwork and the viewer should be pure and unhindered by the artists’ intentions. Sometimes the viewer needs to know what I was thinking or what I was inspired by and that’s when I share my side of the process. But when I go to buy or appreciate other people’s art, I’m not very concerned with the inspiration of the artist, rather by how I resonate with his or her creation.
What have been the major challenges of your life so far?
I have been very lucky in my life and I must say that my challenges have been very manageable so far alhamdulilah. Losing my father at the young age of 11 was a big challenge for me but it taught me to expect anything in life. To trust that Allah will help me through anything and that makes me stronger as a person.
Tell us about your association with ArtBAB? where did it all start and how?
I joined the initiative in 2015 and this is the second year of the art fair. I feel that an art fair provides an invaluable platform for Bahraini artists and offers them a huge advantage to further their careers by introducing them to buyers and galleries from all around the world. ArtBAB allows Bahrain to enter into the global scene and take part in the global artistic conversation. The fair also brings world-renowned galleries and works to Bahrain and allows people here to see what the world has to offer artistically.
What are the different types of painting you do?
I don’t like to label myself or box myself in a specific genre. I enjoy abstract painting because there’s a freedom and joy when I paint an abstract painting. When I paint a figurative painting it’s more deliberate and measured. I enjoy painting the figurative works just as much but I don’t have the freedom that I do when I paint an abstract painting. Having said that all my paintings are oil on canvas. I love working with oil paint as it has a richness and texture that I can’t see in acrylics.
Do you feel that a formal training is essential to pursue arts?
Being a self-taught painter I must say that it is not essential. It is certainly beneficial and some would benefit greatly from it but others like myself are happy discovering our techniques through trial and error. Having said all that I do think that a knowledge about the arts is important. It’s important to learn about the different schools and painters that have helped shape the art world as we know it. In this day and age knowledge is but a click of a button away. I do appreciate the need for art education and I hope that Bahrain makes a concentrated effort to open art schools to cater to the vast talent that we have on the island.
Have you participated/held exhibitions in Bahrain or in any other place? Give us a list of the last few.
I have been very lucky to have had the opportunity to exhibit both in Bahrain
and abroad. In Bahrain I have exhibited
in the first edition of the art fair Art Bahrain as well as this year’s ArtBAB art fair. I was also chosen to exhibit at the Bahrain National Museum at the annual fine arts exhibition 2017. I’ve joined in three group exhibition for Bahraini artists. The first is BAAB which took place in 2016, it opened at the Victoria and Albert Museum and then went on to Gallery 8 in Mayfair. I also exhibited in Be Bahrain, Bahrain art week in London. I am currently a part of an exhibition called I Am which will be a traveling exhibition showing in Amman, Jordan, London and Washington DC. I will be among 7 Bahraini female artists chosen along with 31 female artists from various Middle Eastern countries. The exhibition aims to build bridges between the East and the West, which is very important in this current climate. Over the past two years I have shown in The Hamptons, New York and Miami with Vogelsang Gallery. So you can see I have been very lucky to meet with people who are interested in my work and want to show it.
What kind of help and support do you seek to help reach your goal?
My goal is to show my work to as many people as I can, as often as I can. Art is created to be shared and that’s what makes me happy. In Bahrain there has been a lot of support in this regard. First and foremost I would like to thank HRH. Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa wife of His Majesty The King of Bahrain and President of The Supreme Council For Women for her patronage and support for the arts in general and for ArtBAB in particular. HRH, an artist herself, has a keen appreciation for art and her support has encouraged and galvanised the art community to continue to offer their best work. I truly appreciate her continued support. Secondly, Tamkeen has been invaluable in providing opportunities like ArtBAB. They believe in the art sector as a viable sector with potential for economic growth and they have supported the arts to that end. The Bahrain Culture authority and SH. Hela Al Khalifa is also a constant source of support and encouragement for Bahraini artists. Her enthusiastic support and ideas for out of the box opportunities for artists has invigorated the Bahraini
art scene. Art Select, the art consultants who work with Tamkeen to put on the
fairs in Bahrain and exhibitions abroad
are also to be thanked as they always
seek to showcase Bahraini art in the best light possible.
What is your message to the aspiring artists of Bahrain?
To join the Bahraini art scene. To keep an eye out for the open calls and to apply to every opportunity. I ask them not to get discouraged from a reject or two but to persevere in their pursuit of the arts. It’s a very worthy pursuit.