A concept drawing for Fatima Al Sharshani’s Jedarirat.
Doha: Qatar Year of Culture yesterday announced the Portland, Oregon iteration of Jedarirat, a public art initiative that brings Qatari artists and mural art to the US, as part of Qatar-USA 2021 Year of Culture, an annual international cultural exchange designed to deepen understanding between nations and their people.
In partnership with the Portland Street Art Alliance (PSAA), Qatari artist Fatima Al Sharshani will paint a new mural on a building wall located at 636 SE 10th Ave. The featured work, entitled The Never Ending You is an expression of continuity and infinity. Al Sharshani has been working in calligraphy art since 2011 and is the founder of Qaif, a calligraphy company. The Never Ending You is an abstract piece that merges Arabic letters into a shape of a circle, representing continuity. The inner depth of the circle is a sensory expression that sparks a notion of infinity, and the never-ending power that lives within us.
Similar to Jedarirat, the Portland Street Art Alliance was created to advance street art culture and empower artists to activate the spaces where they live and work. Fatima’s artwork will be a part of a larger programme to update and revamp building walls within the Central Eastside Industrial District and will be located alongside murals by local artists including John Vance, Daniel Santollo, Jade Sturms, Sunny Beard, Isis Fisher, Jesus Torralba, Rupezzy, and more.
“We are so excited to continue the Jedarirat programme throughout the United States,” said Aisha Al Attiya, Head of QM’s Years of Culture. “By introducing talented Qatar-based artists like Fatima Al Sharshani to the US, we’re continuing to build the Years of Culture programme and create a mutual partnership and understanding between the US and Qatar cultures.”
“I am incredibly proud and grateful for this opportunity to represent my country, Qatar, abroad in the Qatar-USA 2021 Year of Culture,” shared Fatima Al Sharshani. “I am honored to share my story through art and highlight the beauty of Arabic calligraphy on the walls of Portland.”
Jedarirat is an annual programme in Qatar developed by Qatar Museums under the patronage of its Chairperson H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani in 2020 to add vibrancy and meaning to the walls of Doha through murals, encouraging individuals to reflect on social, historical, and cultural conversations.
