Capturing a moment
Award-winning artist Jamal Abdul Rahim made history earlier this year when he became the first Bahraini to enter work for sale through Christie’s, the globally famous London auction house.

An increasing number of collectors are now anxious to obtain the work of Jamal Abdul Rahim – an artist of many facets - after his Blue 11 acrylic on canvas sold for more than $7,000 through Christie’s.

The inspiration and creativity of Jamal - who has exhibited in Africa, Europe and the Middle East - comes from his environment, country and people, and under these influences he has formed his own unique style.

“Art is an expression of reality,” says Jamal. “There are no borders for artists or art. A true art lover will travel to the end of the world, if need be, to seek out the art he wants.”

A latecomer, he only seriously entered the world of art in his early 20s after visiting an exhibition. Realising his own creative abilities could become superior to those he saw, his own artistic journey began. “The most fundamental practise for all artists is to start with the basics,” says Jamal, who began with line drawings before foraying into printmaking, painting and sculpture.

Creating his own stamp of art - Arab in content, feel and idea – Jamal says that it is important to “try to participate in conveying a message from country to country, region to region. Art is a spiritual exercise, which cannot be ignored.”

Building his art from the movement of society, deeply rooted in rich Arab civilisation, its mythology, religion and language, stimulation of culture has led him into creating handmade books, inspired by traditional poetry and philosophy.

“Each artist has individuality,” he says. “I see from a view that is different to others. Essentially, with each interpretation, we are building the region’s history through the principal subject, which is man.”

Raw materials and natural elements are a constant inspiration, with Jamal most recently working with black galaxy granite for sculptures, using diamonds to cut and shape the strong stone into striking designs.

An avid sculpting fan, he likes to use stone “for it is already beautiful and by sculpting it, I am inspired, withdrawing that beauty into a form.”

A keenness for his work to reach the maximum number of people saw Jamal form an affinity to printmaking, in which he says it is important to know when and how to use the various techniques. With one of the largest workshops in the Gulf, he now has a packed schedule of exhibitions.

“I regard myself as a student and a teacher of art at the same time. I am still searching art and spend a lot of time in my workshop exploring the lines and colours,” he says.

“It can take 20 years to form one line because day by day you are finding yourself in your work. With experience comes the knowledge of knowing what you want and how to create it. To be a poet you must read great poets; to be an artist, you study others. As humans, we share one collective history, and it is a constant give and take of influences.”

Through experimenting with different mediums, Jamal and Modhir Ahmed, a fellow artist, have simplified the way lithographs are made, incorporating an alternative material to the traditional stone used for hundreds of years.

For Jamal – who proudly says his work was the first by a Bahraini artist to be put up for auction at Christie’s - art is about capturing a moment, and by not allowing work to fall under any particular style, he is happy to be constantly free to experiment.