UAE's shy artist

Abdul Qadir Al Rais is one of the most gifted watercolourists in the Arab world. His exhibition in Dubai hints at why you may know so little about him

Speak softly, and carry a large paintbrush — that seems to be Abdul Qadir Al Rais's driving principle.

The UAE's most celebrated artist is a simple man, not given to elaborate speechmaking or fiery gestures.

His defining characteristics are warmth and tranquility, which makes his outburst about the lack of a national art museum all the more unexpected.

"It is a shame," he says. "Every country in the world has at least one national gallery showcasing the work of that nation's artists."

In the UAE, the only thing that comes close is the Sharjah Art Museum, and even then there are very few places reserved for UAE artists, he says.

"It is not enough. I have refused to sell many of the pieces that are closest to my heart because I believe they are for the public to see and enjoy, but there are few places I can show them."

He is equally vocal in his denunciation of installation art, the ultra-modern multi-media and multi-dimensional art form that involves temporary constructions in interior and exterior spaces rather than over stretches of canvas.

The movement has been around at least since 1917, when a urinal was placed in a New York art gallery as an exhibit, not a facility.

Lights Going On and Off in a Gallery, another popular installation piece from a few years ago, involved just that — lights going on and off in a gallery.

Al Rais is dismayed that such a trend — one that seemingly shuns the value of traditional skill and craftsmanship — has gained currency in certain quarters of the UAE's artistic community.

"It destroys the feeling of art in the new generation," he says. "This is not right.

Installation art lasts only as long as it is installed, and then you take it away with a bulldozer. Art is a gift from God, not something to be taken out and thrown away like garbage."

His comments are far from being sour grapes.

Al Rais has maintained an informal leadership over the UAE art scene since the late 1980s, and is in no danger of losing his pre-eminence.

There is less than a handful of national artists whose works show some of his promise, but few have his reputation, history and his prowess with watercolours, long a Western art medium.

Complex landscapes

Perhaps it is just because he is a traditionalist, an artist who takes to heart his responsibility to the community.

"The duty of an artist is to elevate the taste of the people, to help them feel better, and to help them understand the world around them," he says.

Whether it is his early still life, his socially conscious and political pieces, the more complex landscapes that reveal his distinct emerging style or his most recent abstract work, his range of work certainly follows those sensibilities.

Pieces from each period are currently on display at the Al Owais Cultural Foundation in Dubai, making this one of the most comprehensive and important exhibitions of his career.

Some of his strongest pieces are those with the simplest emotions: his take on the Intifada and Palestinian refugee camps, the civil war in Lebanon, the invasion of Kuwait, the relentless development of the region, the clash of modernity and tradition, and the hypnotically beautiful and sun-kissed desert and wadi landscapes that are far from the stark and harsh realities of Hatta.

John Dishman, Dubai-based artist, critic and art professor, sayd Al Rais's ability to find the beauty in the harshest environments is his stock in trade.

"One of the first things you will see in Abdul Qadir's images is the little squares, which are the reflections of light that is burnt into your retina from looking at a bright light source," Dishman explains.

"He shows those squares in traditional doors, wadis, deserts, everywhere, to convey the brightness and promise of life that is the current mood here."

"He is showing the new light and the new energy of Dubai in an abstract form. Artists record history, and the good ones like Abdul Qadir record the mood and atmosphere of the times as well as the visual. His work is like a time capsule, capturing the evolution of Dubai."

Despite Al Rais's extensive body of work, it is rare to see his social commentary pieces in most exhibitions of his work.

Pride of place is instead given to his renderings of doors, majlises, dhows and desert landscapes, which although beautiful seem to be almost too mild at a time of great social and political upheaval across the region.

Perhaps it is because, as the artist himself says, most people want to see happy things, or perhaps because the artist himself does not want to court controversy.

Keeping it simple

"I think it's because he's shy," says Dishman.

"He doesn't want to have confrontation, not because of a lack of strength, but he'd rather be more private and expressive.

He feels comfortable being exposed with the pieces that are easy to understand and accept — it's the same reason the Impressionist period of art is so popular.

Not everyone wants to or can understand complex art."

Al Rais has the UAE art market covered not solely because of the dearth of UAE artists or because he is in the right place at the right time, but simply because he is an extremely gifted artist.

Dishman, who has known Al Rais since 1993, says the soft-spoken artist is one of the best investments in the country.

Dishman himself owns 18 Al Rais paintings, more than a tenth of his international collection.

"Everybody I've brought to Dubai from the international art scene, from the keeper of the Royal Academy of Art to experts from the leading European and American galleries, say his understanding of the form, mastery and execution is brilliant," Dishman says.

"He is the best watercolourist in the Middle East, and ranks high worldwide as a watercolourist."

"He has so much control with his subject matter, understands it, knows exactly how to present it and execute it," Dishman adds.

"I go to show after show in the UAE, and most other artists have one or two but not all of those skills. Abdul Qadir doesn't need to shout about who he is — he can present himself softly, and that speaks very loudly."

The art community in the UAE is beholden to Abdul Qadir Al Rais in many ways, says Dishman, because he has opened many doors, and has been able to demand respect and equitable prices.

The artist himself is not overly concerned with trading on his past, but is looking to the future.

He would like more expatriates to see his work, and admits UAE artists and galleries need more savvy marketing and public relations to attract people.

"The people are the final judge between what is good and what is rubbish, and what will last and what will fade away," Al Rais says.

"If I can capture what the people are feeling, and capture that feeling for the future as a record of our time, then I have done my work."

The Abdul Qadir Al Rais exhibition is at the Al Owais Cultural Foundation, on the ground floor of the Sultan Business Centre on Al Riqqa Street, Dubai.

It is open from 9am to 9pm daily and will run until Apri