The Middle East Institute Arts and Culture Center invites you to a panel conversation about the arts in Bahrain with three artists featured in its current exhibition, The Sea of Life: Modern and Contemporary Art from The Kingdom of Bahrain. The panel is part of the ongoing programming around the exhibition, which runs until March 26, 2024.https://youtu.be/yVusVFiYmbo?si=hFNLCpbgB6cDWt9v
Marwa Al Khalifa, Mashael Alsaie and Jaafar Al Oraibi will discuss their work, the vision that drives their practice and how their art is part of a conversation that is shaping Bahrain's local arts scene, pushing its boundaries and exploring new artistic expressions.
The Sea of Life features fourteen artists spanning different generations and art forms exploring their connection to their natural and built environment through painting, photography, sculpture, video and installation, co-curated by Bahrain-based Hayfa Aljishi and MEI Arts and Culture Center Director Lyne Sneige.
The show is sponsored by the National Arts Council in Bahrain and the RAK Art Foundation. The MEI Art Gallery is free and open to the public, regular hours are M-F from 10:00am to 5:00pm. Walk-ins are welcome and you can make a timed appointment on our site.
Participating artists: Rashid Al Khalifa, Marwa Al Khalifa, Mohammed Al Mahdi, Mariam AlNoaimi, Jaafar Al Oraibi, Abdul Karim Al-Orrayed, Mashael Alsaie, Jamal AlYousif, Nasser AlYousif, Ebrahim Bu Saad, Balqees Fakhro, Aysha Hafuz, Ghada Khunji, Abbas Yousif
Featured Speakers
Marwa Al Khalifa is a Bahraini mixed media artist and photographer, she incorporates different materials and techniques to create works that reflect a sense of spirituality, encouraging the observer to contemplate and embark on a personal voyage.
Mashael Alsaie is a Bahraini multimedia artist and photographer who seamlessly weaves together Bahraini mythologies, science fiction, and ecofeminism. Alsaie's practice expresses research-driven interpretation of Bahraini mythologies via text, image, and glass. Her most recent work explores collective consciousness embedded in the myth of the Adhari Spring in Bahrain.
Jaafar Al Oraibi is a Bahraini multimedia artist and painter. Al Oraibi creates multimedia art using a meticulous process involving observation, layered sketches, etching, incision, and collaging. His work explores the individual's role in society and society’s relationship with the environment. The artist emphasizes the importance of the laborious process as a component of his work that allows room for a multilayered, nuanced narrative.
Moderator
Lyne Sneige is the director of the Arts and Culture Center at the Middle East Institute where she directs and manages the MEI Art Gallery and its related programming. Sneige has over 20 years of experience in cultural development in the Middle East and is a strong advocate of the role of the arts in society.
Sponsored by
Featured Art Work:
Marwa Al Khalifa, Yellow & Blue (2015), 15.5 x 21"
Courtesy of the artist, on view at the MEI Art Gallery