mood_journal.pdf |
i_am_what_i_art_manifesto_by_fadwa_al_qasem.pdf |
My Artivities
Through my Artivities, I strive to Engage, Energize, Evolve, Empathize, Expand, Exchange, Empower.
I strive to express the eloquence and beauty in the details that surround our everyday existence.
I strive to engage myself and others in Artivities that evoke wonder, formulate more questions, question the answers, and whisper softly to the soul.
I strive to create art that is adventurous, intuitive, spontaneous, salient and tactile. I seek to be raw and honest in my work and I jealously guard the rough-around-the-edges aspects of my art.
I strive to ignore limitations and pretend they do not exist.
I strive to find magic, create magic, share magic.
I strive to create harmony between my mind, soul and body.
I strive to write stories with my work that, like life itself, continue to unfold because I am a lover of stories and a believer of the importance of many stories.
I strive to read the stories of others, in whatever shape and form they may take, and I seek to create Artivities that increase opportunities for sharing these stories. I also hope that my Artivities will help others write more of their own stories to share. Or not.
I strive to come to terms with the fact that my existence, like that of my art, might be futile, pointless, transient. Or not. But I strive to create a path to go through it anyway.
I invite those who share all, any, some of the above statements to join in by participating in my Artivities, by sending me their own arty statements, by being engaging, engaging others and sharing the results, photos and stories.
My Art
My work is mostly about stories using words, patterns, curves, abstracts, photos, colour and texture. I like to keep discovering new harmonies between techniques and mediums; paint, collage, photography, texts, writing, fibre arts, beading and the human spirit.
Through my Artivities, I strive to Engage, Energize, Evolve, Empathize, Expand, Exchange, Empower.
I strive to express the eloquence and beauty in the details that surround our everyday existence.
I strive to engage myself and others in Artivities that evoke wonder, formulate more questions, question the answers, and whisper softly to the soul.
I strive to create art that is adventurous, intuitive, spontaneous, salient and tactile. I seek to be raw and honest in my work and I jealously guard the rough-around-the-edges aspects of my art.
I strive to ignore limitations and pretend they do not exist.
I strive to find magic, create magic, share magic.
I strive to create harmony between my mind, soul and body.
I strive to write stories with my work that, like life itself, continue to unfold because I am a lover of stories and a believer of the importance of many stories.
I strive to read the stories of others, in whatever shape and form they may take, and I seek to create Artivities that increase opportunities for sharing these stories. I also hope that my Artivities will help others write more of their own stories to share. Or not.
I strive to come to terms with the fact that my existence, like that of my art, might be futile, pointless, transient. Or not. But I strive to create a path to go through it anyway.
I invite those who share all, any, some of the above statements to join in by participating in my Artivities, by sending me their own arty statements, by being engaging, engaging others and sharing the results, photos and stories.
My Art
My work is mostly about stories using words, patterns, curves, abstracts, photos, colour and texture. I like to keep discovering new harmonies between techniques and mediums; paint, collage, photography, texts, writing, fibre arts, beading and the human spirit.
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنها فكرة أكتبها في ذهني منذ عقود. بالعربية. بالانجليزية. بالألوان الشمعية. بالصبغ. وجدتني متلبسة بالجرم وأنا أصبغ العبارة على سقف ذهني، وفي طيات روحي الغجرية التي تجري في عروقي
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني سأجمح إذا قُيّدت بشيء واحد فقط، بفكرة واحدة فقط. سأتمرد إن أُجبَرتُ أن أرى بمنظور واحد فقط
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني، كالفنّ، أستطيع أن أكون، في ذات الوقت مقدامة وغامضة وجريئة وملطّفة ومحرضة وقوية وناعمة وضعيفة ومراوغة وواضحة وأنانية وكريمة ودافئة وباردة ومتحدية وثائرة ومضطربة .. كثيرة الاضطراب
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أريد أن أقف دون ارتباك، دون خوف، حائرة، ناقصة وأتقبل النقد بصدر رحب كما أتقبل الإطراء، ومع ذلك، أريد أن لا أتأثر بأيهما
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن الفن لا يهمه التعريف، تلك الألقاب والأسماء التي تسعى المدارس لتأطيرها
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، ففي اعترافي بحدودي وقيودي أجد حريتي بأن أتخطاها جميعها
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أتعامل مع تفاصيل حياتي كالفنّ وأحوّل كل شيء إلى فنّ. الحب والصداقة والأمومة والعمل والرياضة والمحادثات والخلافات وحتى الحزن والفقدان
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أدرك، وأعي ترف تعبيري بأنني فني وفني أنا. ولأنني متفائلة دون هوادة. ولأنني أحب أن أؤمن بأن الفن يمكن أن ينقذ الحياة ويحكي القصص ويوحد الناس، ويزيح الحجاب حتى نرى بوضوح بأننا متشابهون أكثر من أننا مختلفون
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أؤمن بأن الإبداع، تماما كالحرية، حقّ مشروع
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن الفن يطفو كقطرات الندى في الأكسجين الذي نتنفسه. إنه مدبوغ في جيناتنا، إنه إرث البشرية
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن الفن شمولي في الشكل والجوهر وهمة البشر
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني مشروع يمكن تفسيره وإعادة تفسيره، حتى يُكتَشَف أن كل التفسيرات السابقة ما عادت مقبولة
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن حتى في محاولاتي لإخفاء هويتي، أكشف هويتي. لأن الفن أخيرا، هو فرصتي لأبدو .. كأنا
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني سأجمح إذا قُيّدت بشيء واحد فقط، بفكرة واحدة فقط. سأتمرد إن أُجبَرتُ أن أرى بمنظور واحد فقط
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني، كالفنّ، أستطيع أن أكون، في ذات الوقت مقدامة وغامضة وجريئة وملطّفة ومحرضة وقوية وناعمة وضعيفة ومراوغة وواضحة وأنانية وكريمة ودافئة وباردة ومتحدية وثائرة ومضطربة .. كثيرة الاضطراب
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أريد أن أقف دون ارتباك، دون خوف، حائرة، ناقصة وأتقبل النقد بصدر رحب كما أتقبل الإطراء، ومع ذلك، أريد أن لا أتأثر بأيهما
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن الفن لا يهمه التعريف، تلك الألقاب والأسماء التي تسعى المدارس لتأطيرها
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، ففي اعترافي بحدودي وقيودي أجد حريتي بأن أتخطاها جميعها
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أتعامل مع تفاصيل حياتي كالفنّ وأحوّل كل شيء إلى فنّ. الحب والصداقة والأمومة والعمل والرياضة والمحادثات والخلافات وحتى الحزن والفقدان
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أدرك، وأعي ترف تعبيري بأنني فني وفني أنا. ولأنني متفائلة دون هوادة. ولأنني أحب أن أؤمن بأن الفن يمكن أن ينقذ الحياة ويحكي القصص ويوحد الناس، ويزيح الحجاب حتى نرى بوضوح بأننا متشابهون أكثر من أننا مختلفون
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني أؤمن بأن الإبداع، تماما كالحرية، حقّ مشروع
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن الفن يطفو كقطرات الندى في الأكسجين الذي نتنفسه. إنه مدبوغ في جيناتنا، إنه إرث البشرية
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن الفن شمولي في الشكل والجوهر وهمة البشر
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأنني مشروع يمكن تفسيره وإعادة تفسيره، حتى يُكتَشَف أن كل التفسيرات السابقة ما عادت مقبولة
أنا فنّي .. فنّي أنا، لأن حتى في محاولاتي لإخفاء هويتي، أكشف هويتي. لأن الفن أخيرا، هو فرصتي لأبدو .. كأنا
- I Am What I Art because I've been writing this in my head for decades. In Arabic. In English. With crayons. With paint. Ever since I caught myself red-handed scribbling these words on the roof of my mind and in the crevices of the gypsy spirit that runs through my veins.
- I Am What I Art because I will lash out if tied down to one focus, one concept. I will rebel against being forced into one solitary world view.
- I Am What I Art because, like art, I can be simultaneously and alternately bold, ambiguous, audacious, soothing, instigating, strong, soft, weak, elusive, obvious, selfish, generous, warm, cold, defiant, agitated, restless. Mostly restless.
- I Am What I Art because art is my promise to keep life fresh and interesting. Because art is my chance to live more than one life in this life time.
- I Am What I Art because I, too, want to stand unabashed, unafraid, uncertain, unfinished, open to criticism and admiration, but being changed by neither.
- I Am What I Art because art does not worry about its own definition. Labels, names, schools cannot pigeon-hole its essence.
- I Am What I Art because in recognizing my current limitations I am free to go far beyond them.
- I Am What I Art because I approach the details of my life like art, and I turn everything into art. Love, friendship, parenthood, work, exercise, conversations, disagreements, even sadness and loss.
- I Am What I Art because I realize, I appreciate, I am aware, of the luxury of being able to say I am what I art. Because I am a hopeless optimist. Because I like to believe that art can save lives, tell stories, unite peoples, remove the veil so we can see clearly that we are more the same than different.
- I Am What I Art because I believe creativity, like freedom, is a birthright.
- I Am What I Art because art floats around like droplets of dew in the oxygen we breathe. It's imprinted in our genes, it’s humanity's inherited legacy.
- I Am What I Art because of the comprehensiveness of art in form, substance and human endeavor.
- I Am What I Art because I am a project that can be interpreted and re-interpreted, only to discover that all previous interpretations do not apply.
- I Am What I Am because even in trying to hide who I am, I reveal who I am. Because art is my chance to finally look like myself!
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My specialty is original chokers.
My concept: to paint with beads. Using semi-precious stones, Venetian style hand painted glass beads, beautiful lamp beads, faceted crystals, and other beads specially designed for me, I create one-of-a-kind or limited edition jewelry pieces.
After spending considerable time studying beads and their fascinating history, I discovered that the glass beads have a background no less auspicious than that of diamonds, pearls, and semi-precious stones. Each bead is a miniature container holding the secrets of the culture that made it, traded it, and wore it. Drawing inspiration from this fascinating discovery, and from many other pleasures in life; magical childhood experiences created by my mother, the tapestry of colors in my father’s tenderly cared for garden, the marvelous hues of blue and green of the sea in Spain, exotic cultures, dreams and fantasy, I design individual chokers that each have a name, a character, and a story…
My concept: to paint with beads. Using semi-precious stones, Venetian style hand painted glass beads, beautiful lamp beads, faceted crystals, and other beads specially designed for me, I create one-of-a-kind or limited edition jewelry pieces.
After spending considerable time studying beads and their fascinating history, I discovered that the glass beads have a background no less auspicious than that of diamonds, pearls, and semi-precious stones. Each bead is a miniature container holding the secrets of the culture that made it, traded it, and wore it. Drawing inspiration from this fascinating discovery, and from many other pleasures in life; magical childhood experiences created by my mother, the tapestry of colors in my father’s tenderly cared for garden, the marvelous hues of blue and green of the sea in Spain, exotic cultures, dreams and fantasy, I design individual chokers that each have a name, a character, and a story…
As Designer
One day I discovered the amazing beauty of semiprecious stones, and when I studied their history, I discovered the amazing stories behind such beauty. I was hooked! I taught myself about ornament and its social role in history, I taught myself about beading and semiprecious stones. I took beading courses in Canada and silver smithing in the UK. My jewelry attracted the interested of many Arabic & English language publications, both locally and within the Middle Eastern region. I held several exhibitions: Fashion Week, Al Bustan Hotel, Dubai, U.A.E Unique Art Gallery, joint exhibition, Dubai, UAE Kensington Exhibition Hall, London, UK Ascot Exhibition, Ascot, U.K Four Seasons Hotel, Toronto, Canada The Canadian Craft Gallery, Toronto, Canada The North York Central Library, Toronto, Canada The Crafter’s Marketplace, Burlington, Canada Darel Ons, Alicante, Spain |
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