Biṭāla is the bravery ordinary people find within themselves when faced with war.
Only authentic materials in their purest state were used to make this piece. For blue, I combined two grades of azurite I ground and separated myself: the finer lighter grade provides colour coverage, while the coarser grade sits on top to recreate the deep blue and texture of azurite. The result is an intensely mineral surface that sparkles with natural azurite crystals. The binder is egg glair, while the 24ct gold is applied over gum ammoniac, a plant sap historically used for this purpose. The paper is a gorgeous, dense cotton rag with a rustic unprocessed look.
Creation Process
Is this purely symbolic or is it actually writing the word for bravery in Arabic?
It is writing the word. All of my pieces spell out what they say, nothing is simply abstract except the pieces in the category “beyond words” 🙂
Thank you. I thought that was probably the case but my understanding of Arabic is non-existent.
To be fair even Arabic speakers would not easily be able to read it (and they are not meant to) as this kind of style isn’t part of their visual literacy.