The Aesthetics of Arab Identities in Contemporary Visual Arts: The Painting Practices of Alia Al-Farsi

Abstract

Note from the correspondent author: This paper was conducted as a teamwork assignment under the supervision of the correspondent author Assistant Prof. Dr. Mohammed Baker Mohammed Al-Abbas during    the undergraduate course INTRODUCTION TO ART part of Visual Arts Bachelor Degree Program.

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to analyze the painting practices of the Omani artist Alai Al-Farsi in connecting feminine, cultural and Arab influences in her artworks. And to reveal the significance of such connections with contemporary Arab art from global perspectives in delivering cultural connotations. The present study contributes to visual arts research through further understanding of women's creativity according to cultural developments in Arab countries. The main outcomes of this research reveal the practices of contemporary Arab artists in selecting their subjects to express aesthetic thoughts addressing the cultural concerns of common people. Artists manipulate their artistic practices into the exhibition's spaces to resemble cultural identities in their artworks and endeavor to establish an advanced understanding of the contemporary visual cultures in the local Arab communities. In this case, they reflect on feminism, and they bring feminine subjects as well as assorted ideas that provide a more comprehensive range of iconographies to represent women and their belongings. The artistic representations of women in the painting practice show human dimensions and draw into consideration many cultural components to interpret and analyze the artwork. This investigation concentrated on the visual culture issues expressed by the Omani artist Alia Al-Farsi in her contemporary artworks. Also, the study utilizes the methodology of qualitative analysis to investigate the layers and the elements of feminine iconographies in the Arab contemporary arts to unveil the connections between being a woman, being an artist, and being an Arab. The significance of this critique rests on the objective outcome that reflects women-made art as feminine, cultural, folkloric and social. Nevertheless, the practices, themes, and activities create the feminine aesthetics connected through concurrent art practices manifested in global art functions.

Keywords: Contemporary Arab Art, Painting, Visual Culture, A/R/Tography, Practical Research.

DOI: 10.7176/JEP/11-3-21

Publication date: January 31^st 2020