mzab 2012

Mzab 2012, B"H, Inchallah...

malika

pastels

winter is approaching and i'm obsessed with this idea of bright colors popping out of a wintery white landscape. very psychedelic. much like the colors you see in blotter art, combined with art nouveau pastel and oil paintings. soft, bright colors like lilac, jade, rose, very organic yet not at all earthy. random attacks of color.

blotter art by timothy leary

sarah bernhardt's cleopatra bracelet

traditional Omani girl with henna and jewelry

bones

hanukah is almost over. why so grim? all that early sundown and insomnia finally catching up? what, kandelikas and doughnuts just not enough anymore? i guess not. still up too late. still a little underwhelmed from my low budged holiday decorating.


what a perfect time to discover  Maisoon Al Saleh.

"People can frequently identify buried fragments of a human skeleton, which appeal to them as the remains of what was once living. The bones carry with them identifying factors that tell us more information about the person behind the remains. The bones indicate not only age and gender, but also show a massive amount of information sometimes not identifiable to the naked eye. Through this piece i place a human skeleton in the Emirati dress to signify their roots, literally digging deep in the human's dead body to illustrate their story. A story told by the dead themselves."

i thought i was deep with my coffin purses and ripped fishnets. how refreshing to see a 22 year old with so much soul, minus all the trappings of mall bought nihilism. after the last decade i thought the skeleton was over. having been diamond incrusted, painted pink, bowed, glittered, rendered approachable and sometimes cute by mass retailers. she has returned it to it's original, shocking, form. a double symbol of eternity and mortality, life and death. her paintings are like a modern take on the vanitas theme that was so popular in 16th and 17th century. 

her work will be on view in the states in 2011. look out Austin TX, Portland ME, Atlanta GA, Seatle WA and San Francisco. hopefully she'll hit either Chicago or NYC along the way. 

obsess:

punk arabia - her homepage 

artinfo : the shadow of death emirati artist maisoon al-saleh

meet me

The first post must be about Nico.

The first few seconds of Desertshore summons you to the sahel of your own heart, of your own madness. Nico becomes a guide, her voice, calling out like a shofar, like a muezzin, calling you not to pray but to wait, and to listen. There are so many possibilities, time passes, the sun begins to set and the sand glows, there is nothing but moon, sand, stars and fear. Do you follow this piper beyond the Desertshore, or do you camp there for the night, haunted by strings and that voice? You have no choice, as you are lulled to sleep. Reward your grace, but it's still cold. You are beautiful, and you are alone. And Nico is not a beautiful young German model. She is Aicha Kandisha, the Desert Djinn who lives by the water. She transforms from beauty to crone before the eyes of young men. Drawing them in with her beauty, her body then changes to half Camel, her face old. There are ritual songs for Aicha, in a trance, only through ecstatic dancing and singing her poor male victim may be restored of his sanity.

I'm a woman, I am simply entranced.