A VERSATILE Bahraini airbrush artist who has custom-painted more than 10,000 helmets over the last 12 years is planning to showcase his artwork across the globe.
Sayed Sadiq Al Tajer is renowned for his work on helmets of Formula One drivers, including Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Stoffel Vandoorne and Fernando Alonso. However, the helmets don’t have his signature owing to contractual obligations with international manufacturers.
Mr Al Tajer also draws and paints using special airbrushes on sports cars, motorbikes, boxes, electronic sheeshas (vapes), flasks and kitchen utensils.
The 31-year-old calligrapher, cartoonist and graphic designer has been taking part in local exhibitions including those organised by Bahrain Youth Forum Society as part of its Naseem Initiative since 2015.
He is now hoping to go global and showcase his work at art galleries in Rome, Milan, London, Paris, Berlin and New York among others.
“An airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that atomises and sprays paint, ink, dye or foundation on any media,” Mr Al Tajer, who lives in Saar, told the GDN.
He was artistically inclined since childhood and graduated from secondary school in denting and car painting. He then took up a job as a painter in a private company.
However, he quit the job around 12 years ago to pursue his passion.
“I did not want to just hold a paintbrush and do as ordered, which is going around in endless circles,” said Mr Al Tajer.
“I realised that I had to do something different.
“I have met a lot of mentors on my way who taught me ways to hone my skills. Some of their concepts were pathbreaking and it helped me think out of the box and create a unique style of my own.
“I started painting on helmets, boxes and almost anything I could lay my hands on.
“I put up my work on social media and sent samples to national and international agencies and one day, received a call from a private company asking if I could paint on F1 helmets.
“It was unbelievable, I was assigned to paint 25 replica helmets for Rosberg.
“The ace F1 driver was impressed with my work and wanted me to paint his original head gear in 2016. That was my first breakthrough. Soon, orders from Alonso and others followed.”
Since then, there has been no looking back.
Mr Al Tajer says he has painted on more than 10,000 helmets including those for car and bike racers, boxers, fighters and American football players.
“My imagination runs wild every time I see an interesting object, I just draw and paint on them,” he said.
“I have done 3D drawing on boxes, electronic sheeshas (vapes), flasks and kitchen utensils.
“Several local sportsmen have had their cars and motorbikes painted by me.”
Mr Al Tajer is happy, however, the ambitious young man is aiming to fly higher by painting on aircraft.
He showed the GDN multiple computerised designs for the Gulf Air’s Falcon besides other images that could be drawn on the national carrier.
“Drawing on aircraft has been my childhood dream and Gulf Air remains my favourite,” he said.
His father-in-law and wife are famous Bahraini artists and photographers. Mr Al Tajer has two children – daughter Maria and son Mohammed.
mohammed@gdnmedia.bh
&uuid=(email))