Musical Art
Suleiman Mansour, Sad Tunes, 1977, Oil on canvas, 87 x 90. Image courtesy of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
We each have a different relationship with sound. Some sounds we seek to give us peace, to inspire us, and make us dream. Other sounds we listen to, to learn new things and for work. Then there is the sound of song and music, that we listen to for entertainment and to forget where we are for a moment.
We are always very blessed to be able to regularly feature the timeless beautiful works of art from Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah.
If you pause at each artwork, you can hear the music in your mind of that particular piece.
Those of the legendary singers Umm Kalthum, and Asmahan, inspire us to re-listen to their songs and remember their stories. Until today, mystery revolves around them. The beautiful and mysterious Syrian Druze princess Asmahan died when the car she was traveling in plunged into a canal in Egypt in 1944. She and a female friend, who were sitting in the back seat of the two-door car, drowned, but the vehicle’s driver escaped.
Her links with British intelligence and the Free French Forces during the Second World War, when she spied on Nazi Germany, led to a series of rumors over her mysterious death at the age of 26. Some said that the British killed her after taking what they needed. Others said the German Gestapo killed her for giving information to the British. Yet others said her Egyptian rival, Umm Kalthum, was somehow involved as her jealousy of Asmahan’s beauty was well known then.
Then the art pieces depicting the delicate dance of the ballet and the hypnotic flutes, remind us of the various ways cultures and people celebrate their moments.
Enjoy these wonderful artworks, and may they inspire you to revisit an old song, a sonata or two, and break into a dance here and there.
Chant Avedissian, You Are Love, 2008, Gouache on cardboard, 49 x 69 cm. Image courtesy of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
Adam Henein, Om Kalthoum 2, 2009, bronze, 160 x 50 x 50 cm. Image courtesy of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
Adel El Siwi, Asmahan, 2008, Mixed media on canvas, 140 x 170 cm. Image courtesy of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
Seif Wanly, Dancing, undated, Oil on canvas, 31.5 x 45.5 cm. Image courtesy of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
Seif Wanly, Flute Player, 1951, Ink and watercolor on paper, 47 x 34 cm. Image courtesy of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
Seif Wanly, Russian Ballet, 1967, Oil on board, 30 x 41 cm. Image courtesy of Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
