GULF WEEKLY -
Bahraini artist Leena Al Ayoobi has showcased the kingdom’s vaunted motorsport heritage on the global stage in her latest piece, commissioned by the Cadillac Formula 1 team.
The award-winning creative’s ‘Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia from all angles’ pays homage to the kindgom while retaining the identity of the newest team on the F1 grid this year.
“The artwork combines Cadillac’s Formula 1 identity with distinctive elements of Bahrain, including the Sakhir Tower, the Bahrain flag, palm trees, traditional tea glasses, and references to motorsport,” she told GulfWeekly.
For the piece, she also used a fluid perspective, which she has been experimenting with, in which the artwork can be viewed and experienced from different directions.
This weekend, the first-ever Bahrain Formula 1 Grand Prix in Malaysia is set to take place at the Sepang International Circuit, showcasing the kingdom to fans across Asia.
Leena wanted to preserve Bahrain’s identity in her piece, which was commissioned just two weeks ago.
“Although the race is taking place at Sepang, I wanted the poster to retain a strong and immediately recognisable Bahraini identity,” she explained.
“The Sakhir Tower connects the artwork directly to the Bahrain Grand Prix and its home.
“I chose the Sakhir Tower because the artwork represents the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix being hosted in Malaysia.”
Body Text: In addition to the tower, Leena featured fish in the piece, both for good luck but also as a symbol for lightness and movement.
“Fish frequently appear in my traditional artworks as symbols of good luck and prosperity,” she added.
“For this piece, I transformed them into paper fish to give them a sense of lightness, movement, and speed - qualities that also reflect Formula 1.
“I then incorporated chequered-flag patterns into them to connect the symbolism of prosperity with racing and victory.”
Although Leena will not be attending the race in person, she is excited to be there in spirit through her artwork.
The Bahraini creative also has several other international projects in the pipeline, and looks forward to more meaningful ways to represent Bahrain on an international platform.
For more details, follow @leenz_art on Instagram.
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