GULFWEEKLY: Artists in the kingdom are exploring a new creative outlet that is not just offering them a platform to diversify their mediums and styles but also transforming them into ‘storytellers’, waxing eloquent about Bahrain’s rich urban landscape.
Urban Sketchers (USk) Bahrain, which aims at making art more accessible to the public, comprises a community of people as young as 11 and as old as 80, from diverse professions, including doctors, engineers, businessmen and architects, as well as homemakers and retired individuals.
They meet every Friday to bring alive the kingdom’s diverse landscapes.
Retired Bahraini IT specialist, Abdul Baset Khonji, who worked in the field for more than 45 years, saw the group as an avenue to pursue his childhood hobby – art.
“I hung up my boots two years ago and was looking for something to keep me productive and busy and USk Bahrain was the right platform,” the 62-year-old from Manama told GulfWeekly.
“I’ve enjoyed my time drawing with people from various walks of life. The group has also boosted my confidence to sketch in public,” added the artist, who is also passionate about creating designs using recyclable materials.
Indian expatriate and homemaker Praseetha Ullas, who has been living in Bahrain for 22 years, learned about the group from her peers – a testament to the close-knit art community in Bahrain.
“What began as an art activity has become an enriching ritual,” she said.
“The beauty lies not just in the lines we draw but in the stories we exchange and the friendships we build.
“USk Bahrain has rekindled my love for spontaneous sketching and taught me to see beauty in the ordinary and preserve the moments through ink and watercolour,” the 45-year-old from Salihiya added.
Architect and visual artist Sudeep Deshpande, who has been living in the kingdom for the last 15 years, believes that USk Bahrain has provided him a chance to ‘marry’ both of his passions.
“Urban Sketchers Bahrain has added yet another dimension to my journey as a creative,” the 44-year-old Indian expatriate said.
“It gave me an eye to look at my own work with a different perspective – blending art with architecture. Every line that I draw speaks of not only the proportions and scale, but also embodies the essence of the story behind it,” the Adliya resident noted.
While joining USk Bahrain has given the poet’s creativity a different avenue, sketching as a style is not new to him.
“The first thing I do when I wake up is sketch for 15 to 20 minutes. To some, it may sound off the grid, but this has been my daily routine since childhood.
“My father used to say ‘Sudeep, one sketch everyday’ and I now realise the value of that advice,” he noted.
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