A strong presence of Middle Eastern art at the year's biggest art fair in London added a touch of oriental beauty to the event. Art'13, which was held from the 1st till the 3rd of this month, showcased contemporary art from different countries around the world such as the US, Brazil, India, China in addition to a variety of breathtaking artworks by young Middle Eastern artists. Art'13 hosted four different young galleries from the UAE such as ArtSpace and Art Sawa as well as the Athr Gallery that is based in Jeddah and started four years ago by a group of Arabs who believed art in its different forms and techniques was a tool to demonstrate the creativity of Arab artists in delivering their thoughts to the rest of the world. For Athr, the main goal is to push the flourishing local art scene in the Middle East forward to become in touch with the most prominent international artists and art enthusiasts. In Art'13, Athr Gallery has presented a solo exhibition of the Palestinian artist Hazem Hareb's series “Inside-Outside”, “Me and the Other Half” and the video installation “Impossible Travel”, which consisted of beautiful conceptual photos that expressed his protest against the deterioration of the quality of life in Palestine. His work also loudly spoke about a struggle and the frustrating story of the wall that was built on the Occupied Palestinian territories by the Israelis in 1967. In his explanation of his work, Hareb said: “The act of climbing in order to see over the wall entails a defiance, and the ladder, by its very nature, symbolizes a rising up and a reaching out for the horizon, a horizon that was deliberately obstructed.” Another fascinating and controversial piece of art that was presented by ArtSpace and grabbed the attention of the majority of the visitors was “As You Can't See It” by the Moroccan artist Zakaria Ramhani. This popular artwork, which was drawn with Arabic calligraphy and featuring words such as Tahrir and Cairo, is an expression of the struggle that Egyptian women had gone through during the most recent revolution in the Tahrir Square in Cairo. The exhibition also hosted a talk on “Saudi Arabia and Contemporary Art: Reaching Out”, organized by Athr. The discussion revolved around the identity of contemporary Saudi art and its continuation and development from an early evolution, the relationship it tries to build between traditions and the globalizing world, and the importance of Saudi art's presence internationally. The Middle Eastern art scene is currently preparing for the annual biggest art event in the region, “Art Dubai”, which will be hosting over 100 galleries from all around the world at Madinat Jumeriah.
