Doha: Spray paint is his brush, the blank wall his canvas. Qatari artist Mubarak Al Malik carefully fashions his subject with clear vision and intent on spreading the distinctive beauty of his culture and the innate warmth of his people.
Anyone who happens to visit Al-Abraj Park these days is most likely to feel delighted and welcomed seeing Al Malik’s latest mural depicting a woman in Batoola - a golden metallic-looking face covering traditionally used by older women in Qatar - carrying an incense burner. Using lively colours, Al Malik puts his personal touch and a modern twist to the traditional elements in his piece.
“In Al-Abraj Park, I have presented the woman in Batoola with the Mdkhan (incense burner) in her hand, where the Mdkhan expresses welcoming, authenticity and originality. I’ve also included red roses as a greeting with love and kindness. I hope that people like it and enjoy my art,” Al Malik told The Peninsula.
He has also created another stunning mural at the Fire Station using similar motif.
A versatile and well-travelled artist who has represented Qatar in many events both locally and abroad, Al Malik has taken keen interest in graffiti art seeing how street artists in other parts of the world bring an important part of their culture to a broader audience.
“From my previous travels abroad I used to see artworks and murals by artists from all over the world as they implement their own symbols of their countries, so I decided to use the Batoola which is in most of my artworks. The Batoola is considered one of the heritage and popular symbols in Qatar,” he said.
The artist is exceptionally fluent and adept in traditional art forms including sculpture and fine arts, but his appreciation of graffiti art was born out of “my personal desire to add aesthetic and artistic touches to some remote or old places, and I developed this applying my own patterns and lines implementing them on murals in many official places in Qatar.”
Al Malik is one of the 17 Qatari and expatriate artists actively involved in Jedariart, a fresh Qatar Museums initiative aimed to further enhance public art in Qatar by allowing artists to create stunning murals in a number of locations across the country.
“No doubt I feel very pleased and honoured to be one of the chosen artists for this important project especially because it’s covering places all over Qatar to give the city a glimpse of art,” he said, while lauding how the initiative helps a diverse group of artists.
“What makes this project unique is that there are many names and some of them are artists, who for the first time are implementing artistic works on murals and large spaces, so it is considered a beautiful opportunity for them to unleash their energies and introduce people to their art,” he stressed.
Held in partnership with The Supreme Committee of Beautification of Roads and Public Places, QRail, Woqod, and the Fire Station: Artist in Residence, Jedariart witnesses the participating artists create their mark in various locations such as Al-Abraj Park, Al-Asmakh area, Doha Festival City Interchange, Al Khor Interchange, Post Office Park, 5/6 Park, 5/6 Flyover, Qatar National Library Metro Station and the Woqod Petrol Station in Fereej Kulaib.
Acting Director of Public Art Department at Qatar Museums, Abdulrahman Al Ishaq, is upbeat on how this large-scale project will contribute to further enhancing the country’s already vibrant art landscape especially when it comes to public art.
“The Jedariart Initiative is the first of its kind in Doha, allowing artists the permission to activate walls of the city with mural art. While Qatar’s art scene has an established community of galleries, museums and various art spaces, Jedariart has brought art outside these four walls. Jedariart will add colour to the streets in a way that is relatable and reminiscent of Qatar’s cultural landscape. By allowing the chosen artists the freedom to implement their concepts and designs onto various walls around the city, we hope to add value to Doha’s infrastructure and activate spaces,” Al Ishaq told The Peninsula.
Qatar’s public art scene has seen meteoric rise in recent years with massive number of artworks that pop up all over the country, both by prominent local artists and globally renowned names.
“In the past few years, there has been a great interest in public art in Qatar, as Qatar has become full of artworks all over, and of course we are grateful to Qatar Museums for these efforts,” said Al Malik, citing works by Richard Serra, Louise Bourgeois, and Ali Hassan as some of the notable pieces that attract attention of visitors to Qatar.
Travellers to Qatar can even enjoy a great number of these public art pieces without leaving Hamad International Airport as the airport is home to a vast collection of works by celebrated artists, he noted.
Public art has been an important aspect of the country’s art scene, and with the current challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become even more relevant.
“Public art has played a vital role in the country’s art landscape by creating memorable landmarks and food for thought," said Al Ishaq.
"The current COVID-19 situation has been challenging, however, it has not hindered our progress as a department in delivering public art projects around the city whether they are direct commissions or through our Open Call Programs including Jedariart, our 6/5 Initiative and Student Competition. While galleries and museums have been closed during the pandemic worldwide, public art often expands outdoors and has given the community a space to still interact with art,” added Al Ishaq.
