Omani women calligraphers celebrated the opening of their first collective exhibition at Bait al Zubair last week. The Omani Women Calligraphers Exhibition was the result of a relentless pursuit towards success and it is unique, as it is the first private exhibition for Omani women calligraphers. The artworks and the displayed paintings express the status of women and their role in various fields. Around 36 calligraphers participated in the exhibition with 40 classic paintings in various types of Arabic script ( thuluth, Naskh, Diwani, Al-Diwani Al-Jall, Al-Raq’a , Kufic, Farsi ).
The exhibition also contains artworks from Islamic ornamentation and the art of gilding. The exhibition presents the role of the Omani woman calligrapher in society and the integration of her activity with the activities of other Omani women to ensure their continuity.
The exhibition also aims to spread the culture of Arabic calligraphy and Islamic decoration, in addition to uniting all individual and collective efforts and initiatives that seek to preserve Arabic calligraphy from extinction.
These Omani women calligraphers have stories behind their success in this field. Reasons that some of us see as normal in the course of life as Iman al Abri describes. She said that her greatest achievement in her life would be coming together as a mom and a calligrapher. “Becoming a mom humbled my perspective towards myself, my life and my hobby. I know becoming a mom may seem like a normal season of life for a lot of people, and while it is hard, I acquired power through it”.
“The journey of rediscovering myself began. I found solace in doing work with my hands once again through calligraphy. Then, I slowly started to find the balance between being a mother and my work, in that it was no longer a separate thing, but rather that it was one thing altogether”.
While Shifa al Abri believes that through this talent she can express her thoughts and feelings together.
“It is a way to demonstrate one’s self. In this exhibition, we tried to highlight some of the achievements of the Omani women and shed light on their roles in life, the roles that are obvious to everyone”.
Stressing on the importance of learning in this process, Mithaq al Kalbani says “My love for calligraphy has been with me for as long as I can remember. I made a commitment to myself to maintain a balance of self-care and pursuit of knowledge as I carved out pockets of time to dedicate to creative learning. I signed up for classes and multiple private lessons with accomplished masters to improve my skills. Learning never stopped. I am still always learning. To achieve success, I sought highly skilled instructors who could mentor me and help me to achieve my higher goals of excellence.
It is worth noting that the exhibition that will last one week, was inaugurated by Dr Rahma al Mahrouqiyah, Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation and the presence of HH Alya bint Thuwaini al Said Chairman of Board of Directors of the Omani women Association in Muscat.
