Visitor of Freedom
Exhibition Dates
- December 13, 2022
- January 10, 2023
Artist / Curator
- THURAYA AL BAQSAMI
Artwork
Catalogue
THURAYA AL BAQSAMI
What happened was a fantasy. Within several weeks, the world’s population lost their freedom to languish in the furnace of a large prison, and the jailer was a “virus” named “Corona”. I bitterly tasted the loss of freedom, which was not the result of political oppression or military occupation.
In my studio, I practiced rituals by which I broke the barriers of compulsory isolation, and suddenly the visits of those who rejected isolation and advocates of freedom began. They were angels and saints, pharaonic faces, spring girls, African songs and masks, genies of Aladdin’s lamp, doves of peace, and lucky fish. All of these inhabited my memory, which had stored them in a lifetime journey that spanned decades.
Visitors of freedom carry on their hands liberation checks from the prison of the “virus”, they emerge from the tubes of my colours, they wallow happily on the canvas of my paintings, the doves of peace flutter in my studio. My figures and symbols danced on a white canvas, so that lines scattered, colours intertwined, and my face glowed with the glow of freedom.
Thuraya Al-Baqsami
ما حدث كان ضربا من الخيال. ففي غضون عدة أسابيع فقد سكان العالم حريتهم ليقبعوا في أتون
سجن كبير، وكان السجان “فايروس” اسمه “كورونا”. ذقت بمرارة طعم فقدان الحرية، والتي لم
تكن ناتجة عن قمع سياسي أو احتلال عسكري
وفي مرسمي مارست طقوسا أكسر بها حواجز العزلة الإجبارية، وفجأة بدأت زيارات رافضي
العزل، ودعاة الحرية. كانوا ملائكة وقديسين، وجوه فرعونية، وفتيات الربيع، أهازيج وأقنعة
إفريقية، جني مصباح علاء الدين، حمائم سلام، وأسماك الحظ. كل هؤلاء سكنوا ذاكرتي التي
كانت قد خزنتهم في رحلة عمرية امتدت لعقود
زوار الحرية يحملون على أكفهم صكوك تحريري من سجن “الفايروس”، خرجوا من أنابيب
ألواني، تمرغوا بسعادة على قماش لوحاتي، رفرفت حمائم السلام في مرسمي. رقصت
شخوصي ورموزي على قماش ناصع البياض، لتتناثر الخطوط وتتداخل الألوان ويشع وجهي
بوهج الحرية
ثريا البقصمي
Born in Kuwait 1951. Thuraya is dedicated to art and literature and holds a Master of Arts from Surikov University, Moscow, (1974-1981).
Thuraya held 62 solo exhibitions in a number of countries around the world and Arab countries. She won several awards in art and literature, most notably the Franz Kafka Award, Salvador Dali, the European Union, Tribia, the Qurain Festival Awards from the Kuwait Museum, and the
Kuwaiti Society for Fine Arts Award.
She has published many books in the field of novels, stories, poetry and fine art criticism. Her books have been translated into a number of languages.
Thuraya continues to participate in many international biennials and art forums. She is an advocate for women’s rights in Kuwait. She was chosen by the Sharjah Museum in 2017, as an artist who made a difference in the Arab plastic movement. On this occasion, a retrospective exhibition of her works (1964-2017) was held.
• Acquired works
– British Museum, U.K
– Jordan Museum of Art, Jordan
– Cairo Opera House, Cairo
– UNESCO, Paris
– Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah
– Mahatma Gandhi Institute , Mauritius
– Italian Friendship Association, Florence
– Miro Gallery Prague, Bratislava
– Kuwait Museum of Modern Art, Kuwait