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15
Hello Amer and welcome to NotRandomArt. The current issue is revolving around the problem of communication and identity. Is there any particular way you would describe your identity as an artist, but also as a human being in dynamically changing, unstable times? In particular, does your cultural substratum/identity form your aesthetics?
I don’t think I identify myself as anything else but a regular guy who wants to explore his old memories and comment on different experiences I’ve gone through . I try to create a conversation and let people communicate and have a healthy debate about certain issues mainly social ones . Issues that if it wasn’t for artists they would have been swept under the rug as the society I live is quite conservative . I’ve never been an active user of social media, I rarely share my views or opinions on platforms like twitter or Facebook .. Etc. I much prefer working my ideas and thoughts into photography, and let the work speak my mind preferably with no explanation from me.
Would you like to tell us something about your artistic as well as life background? What inspired you to be in this artistic point in your life when you are now?
I started photography in my first year of college, I started shooting in the streets of Muscat and also shot landscape photos in both Muscat and my home town. A year later I bought a film camera and started experimenting with different medium which greatly improved my photography skills, the main reason why I bought it is because I’ve seen the work of a great artist goes by the name Fan Ho, his photography had poetic and storytelling feel to it that were achieved with old analog cameras. His work along with some works of Joseph Kosuth what inspired me to think of photography in a different way and made it the preferred medium for me to express myself
Could you identify a specific artwork that has influenced your artistic practice or has impacted the way you think about your identity as a participant of the visual culture?
I don’t think what influenced my practices is a work of some sort , but a group of local artists and their work. The very first art gallery I went to was a local one which has opened my eyes to a new community and different personas I’ve thought it doesn’t exist in Oman , just seeing their work and interacting with them motivated me to have my ideas expressed visually. Conceptual photography isn’t a popular form of art in Oman it’s only in recent years artists started experimenting with it , so sometimes finding someone who shares same interests and have same perspective as myself looking into problems and translating them to work through photography can be rather difficult sometimes.
Many of your works carry an autobiographical message. Since you transform your experiences into your artwork, we are curious, what is the role of memory in your artistic productions? We are particularly interested if you try to achieve a faithful translation of your previous experiences or if you rather use memory as starting point to create.
Memory definitely playing a huge part in my work , a great deal of my work is revolving around my childhood and experiences I had when I was a kid. Being a little kid in an extremely conservative and religious society being different wasn’t an option , having opposing opinions is almost criminal so going with the flow is the most convenient way to blend in and not seen as anomaly . I see photography as the perfect way to reflect and as a vehicle to propose my ideas to the society I grew up in to have the people take a second look at what all the things they believed in blindly. If it wasn’t for my past experiences I don’t think I would consider conceptual art or any form of art as career , I think of experiences like a fuel to me they’re the driving force to keep producing visual work.
What is the role of technique in your practice? In particular are there any constraints or rules that you follow when creating?
I don’t follow a specific technique, I think of the problem I want to tackle and look around looking for objects and landscapes that will suit the representation of the idea. I play with the photos I take digitally a little bit for the sole purpose of making the idea represented in the best way to be consumed rather than making it look beautiful. I don’t use any equipment other than the camera in order to give more emphasis on the idea and not to have to deal with tools that might distract me from the objective I’m trying to achieve and not compromising the creative flow.