(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Qatari artist Amal Abdulla al-Aathem speaks through her art and the message in the paintings she presented at the 3rd Konooz Fine Art Auction & Exhibition in London conveyed the power and vitality of women. Her striking work entitled ‘Face Moon' showed the face of a woman within the moon.
Gulf Times spoke to al-Aathem at the auction to learn more about the inspiration behind her paintings. She explained: 'This work shows the relationship between women and the moon. Our calendar is governed by the moon. I chose to demonstrate the empowerment of Arab women. The women of Qatar are strong. We have a powerful culture and education.
She added: 'It means a lot to participate today. I like to collaborate with artists from the East and West. Art is such a positive connection and everyone can relate to it.
The packed event held in the luxury Lanesborough Hotel in London was held under the patronage of Sheikha Alyazia bint Nahyan al-Nahyan and organised by Zainab al-Farhan al-Imam, Founder & Director of the Women's Growth and Success Foundation. She is committed to helping women achieve their goals and puts her business acumen to work on their behalf.
The 65 artworks in the auction were selected by Ihsan al-Khateeb, Founder and Director of the InterCraft Gallery in Sharjah, UAE.
He has a rich academic background in arts and has participated in over 90 exhibitions, locally and internationally. He explained it had taken him about four months to select the works by artists from Iraq, UAE, Turkey, Spain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Yemen. 'I had to turn down a lot of artists. This auction is all about art it is not commercial, he said.
The auction was supported by Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers and Valuers. Five paintings were sold to aid charities with the proceeds going to WellChild, SOS Children's Villages, World Wide Welfare, Iraqi Welfare Association and the Women's Council. Two of the paintings sold to benefit the charities were bought by Sulaiman Hamid Almazroui, UAE ambassador to the UK, who attended with his wife Alya Almazroui.
The ambassador commented: 'We are very happy to participate we bought the pieces to support the auction.
A painting by Spanish artist Patricia Perez was sold to benefit SOS Children's Villages. This was bought by al-Aathem's daughter Fatima al-Ali, a lawyer in Qatar.
SOS Children's Villages charity Ceo Simon Etherington, spoke about their humanitarian work. 'Our village in Aleppo has had to be evacuated twice, but we are going back in and we are in the process of building a brand new village on the outskirts of Damascus working with local people.
'We also have a Mayday Fund, which we will draw on when a crisis happens. It is vital when a crisis happens to be able to mobilise quickly and offer immediate assistance that is why the Mayday fund is so important, he said.
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