NEW sculptures created by Bahraini ceramic artist Mahdi Albannai will be displayed for the first time at the Gulf Potters Exhibition, which opens today.
Titled ‘Motherhood 1’ and ‘Motherhood 2’, the colourful pieces depicting a pair of families are on show alongside the works of 20 other Gulf ceramics artists.
The Gulf Potters Exhibition opens at 11.30am at the Safeya Ali Kanoo Hub for Arts and Handicrafts in Tubli, featuring artisans from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Qatar.
Handmade by Mr Albannai – in his workshop near the Bahrain Arts Society headquarters in Maqsha – the twin pieces portray the towering but abstracted figures of a mother and father standing with their children.
The professional artisan who specialises both in abstract and figurative sculpture has had his art featured as part of the new airport and at the Bahrain National Museum.
Medium
Despite being a potter by training, ceramics are far from Mr Albannai’s only medium. “I like trying different kinds of mediums and materials,” the sculptor told the GDN.
“Whether it is clay, wood, resin, metal, marble or plaster, I always see a medium and think to myself ‘what can I make with this?’,” the full-time artist from Ras Rumman added.
Among Mr Albannai’s most striking work is a collection of 28 bronze-cast sculptures, illustrating traditional Bahraini pastimes and occupations.
“I begin a bronze sculpture by first sculpting it out of clay,” he said, describing his process. “When I am finished, I make a silicone or gypsum mould out of it and cast it in wax.
“For the final metal figure, I go to Egypt with the wax sculptures where I contract a factory to make heat-resistant moulds and cast them in bronze.”
Although the 60-year-old retired art teacher chose bronze because of his love for the medium, he admits that the process is neither easy nor inexpensive.
Travel, shipping and casting costs make bronze an uncommon material to work with, especially in Bahrain, he explained.
Mr Albannai’s journey began in his youth, where he was a member of his school’s fine arts club under the mentorship of renowned artist Abdulkareem Al Boosta.
“There was no government scholarship to study fine arts the year of my secondary school graduation in 1982, so I decided to take matters into my own hands,” he said.
“I went to Iraq to study fine arts in Baghdad University, and intended to take the painting journey but was given a chance to sample the sculpture track instead. Sculpture chose me, I did not choose it.”
Mr Albannai has since gone on to win two Al Dana prizes – the top trophy at the prestigious Bahrain Annual Fine Arts Exhibition.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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