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Bahraini artist Abdulaziz Alasfoor is elated as his artwork has been displayed at a prominent coffee shop in Kuwait – a milestone he describes as particularly meaningful, with the paintings drawing on his childhood memories and traditional elements of Bahraini culture.
Recently installed at Caribou Coffee’s new Karizma branch, the two large-scale pieces depict scenes from a suq, traditional games and Arabic calligraphy.
Shades of blue feature prominently throughout the collection, reflecting the coffee chain’s signature colours and creating a sense of visual continuity.
The opportunity arose when Aya Khair, the project’s curator, saw his work and commissioned two paintings, convinced that his style would enhance the coffee shop’s interior.
Mr Alasfoor
“For me, it was an exciting challenge,” said Mr Alasfoor, 22, who is studying management at the Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) in Mishref, Kuwait.
“Both paintings were much larger than anything I had worked on before, and I also had a limited timeframe to complete them. “Most of my work is digital, and so creating acrylic paintings on this scale pushed me beyond my usual process. I wanted to explore how my artistic style could be translated into a completely different medium and at a much larger scale.”
The two paintings displayed at the coffee shop explore traditional themes, although each approaches them from a different perspective.
Two men playing Dama, a traditional game
One of them depicts two men playing Dama, a traditional board game Mr Alasfoor grew up playing with his grandparents. In Gulf countries, it was famously played by fishermen and elders after returning from the sea.
“I incorporated Caribou’s colours into the piece, along with traditional Arabic calligraphy, which is something I often use in my work,” he explained. “I like combining these elements of traditional heritage with modern, striking colours and a contemporary visual language.”
His second painting presented a greater challenge as he wanted to capture the atmosphere of a living, everyday tradition rather than simply depict traditional objects.
To do so, he visited Suq Al Mubarakiyah, where he sketched locals sitting, drinking tea, talking and spending time together.
Suq Al Mubarakiyah is a historic market in Kuwait City and one of the oldest in the country. It was an important centre of trade before the discovery of oil and has been around for at least 200 years.
“I chose this location because it represents something I find very interesting about tradition – despite how much the world around us changes, certain places maintain a sense of familiarity and continuity,” he said.
“Rather than imagining what tradition looks like, I wanted to go somewhere where I could actually observe it happening – people gathering, socialising, and enjoying simple moments together. The simplicity of these interactions has remained part of the character of the place.
“I think that personal connection is important to my work.”
Mr Alasfoor, who currently travels between Bahrain and Kuwait, said this approach reflects the way he develops many of his ideas, with his sketchbook serving as a constant companion for observations, drawings and concepts.
Seeing the paintings installed in the coffee shop was particularly meaningful as he had long wanted his work ‘to exist beyond social media and digital screens’, he said.
“Seeing my work in a physical space that people actually visit is truly special,” he added.
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