Safeya Binzagr

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From English Wikipedia @ Freddythechick

Safeya Binzagr (Arabic: صفية بن زقر; 1940 – 12 September 2024) was a Saudi Arabian artist, active in the art scene of Jeddah.[1] Binzagr opened her own museum and gallery, the Darat Safeya Binzagr in 2000.[2] She was the only artist in her country to have their own museum.[3]

Background

Binzagr was born in 1940 to a "well-known merchant family" in Jeddah.[4] She was privately taught art in Egypt and went on to earn a degree from St Martin's School of Art in 1965.[2]

Binzagr died on 12 September 2024, at the age of 84.[5]

Career

Binzagr's first exhibition took place in 1968.[6] In 1970, she was the first woman to hold a solo exhibition of her work in Saudi Arabia.[7] Despite her art being presented, Binzagr was not allowed to attend the openings of her own exhibitions until Aramco held a private exhibition of her work in 1976.[8] She was instead represented by male members of her family.[8] In 1973, she chose to stop selling her art.[9] In 1979, Binzagr published a book about Saudi Arabian art called Saudi Arabia, An Artist's View of the Past.[4] The book has been translated into English and French.[10]

Her work uses various mediums, ranging from oil paint, watercolor, pastel, drawing and etchings,[4] and often centers around daily life in Saudi Arabia.[4] She has series of works based on themes such as marriage customs, local costumes and old homes in Saudi Arabia.[11] Binzagr paints cultural themes in order to preserve the cultural traditions of her country.[11] Some of her paintings are based on descriptions given to her by older women about their lives.[12] Binzagr meticulously researches her paintings, either by capturing through photographs images of buildings, craftwork and neighborhoods or by looking through historic documents and photography.[11] Much of the history she has recorded belongs to the Hejaz cultural tradition.[10]

In 1989, she started to imagine a place where she could permanently display and curate her work.[13] The museum took about nine years of planning and construction and was opened in 2000.[11] Binzagr's work can be seen at her museum, the Darat Safeya Binzagr, where admission is free.[14] The museum serves as her home, her studio, and as a gallery of her work.[15] Binzagr hosted public events at her museum to promote art in Saudi Arabia.[10]

References

  1. ^ Fareed, Saleh (12 January 2016). "South African Artist Leaves His Mark on the Streets of Balad". Saudi Gazette. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  2. ^ 2.0 2.1 "Safeya Binzagr (Biographical details)". The British Museum. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  3. ^ "Artist Student's Work Selected for 55th Venice Biennale". University of Sussex. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  4. ^ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Safeya Binzagr". Greenbox Dictionary of Saudi Arabian Artists. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  5. ^ Founder of Saudi Arabia’s fine art movement Safeya Binzagr dies at 84
  6. ^ Naseem, Sumaiyya (20 October 2015). "13 Things You Should Know About Saudi Artist Safeya Binzagr". Destination Jeddah. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  7. ^ Elgibreen 2014, p. 7.
  8. ^ 8.0 8.1 Elgibreen 2014, p. 21.
  9. ^ Elgibreen 2014, p. 38-39.
  10. ^ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Fatany, Samar (26 January 2013). "The Saudi Art Movement Deserves More Attention". Al Arabiya News. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  11. ^ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 Nawwab, Ni'Mah Isma'il (2001). "Painting Cultural History". Aramco World. 52 (1). Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  12. ^ Elgibreen 2014, p. 12.
  13. ^ "Darat Safeya BinZagr". Saudi Art Guide. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  14. ^ Elgibreen 2014, p. 8.
  15. ^ Maisel, Sebastian; Shoup, John A., eds. (2009). Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Arab States Today: An Encyclopedia of Life in the Arab States. Vol. 1. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. p. 158. ISBN 9780313344466.

Sources

External links

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