Aslan pictures and art works exhibited here are showing a general
account of all Somalia, especially, the environment, the culture, and
the understanding of the Somali people. In these pictures, one can
sometimes draw from happiness and other times sadness.
The pictures
presented here show us both clear portrait, and imaginary shadow figure;
nevertheless, interpret the real life of the Somali people.
Let us take an example of the problems faced by the Somali people due to water scarcity:
These portraits show the wide-ranging picturesque of Mogadishu, its markets, and the suburbs.
We must also acknowledge the innate creativity of the Somali artists which originates from the Somali culture.
One of the Aslan pictures is showing a flock of sheep relaxing early
morning in a sheep fence (xero), herded by a thinly built man. In the
picture, the Somali Artists indicate the troubles and hardships endured
by the Somali people during the dictatorial regime which had ruled the
country. The extent of indoctrination and conditioning to the people was
so great that the people could not move on forward up to this present
day, and do not know how to rebuild their shattered life.
This kind
of art display can be described as an adventurous journey through which
the history, life, and culture of the Somalia people is closely
observed. The message conveyed by these pictures can sometimes leave
one’s mental healthy permanently scarred; and other times, it can be a
complete imagination gone too far but still passing on deeply rooted
meaning.
Currently, both Somali and non Somali people have the opportunity to
view these artifacts which has been quite a pain-staking piece of work
to produce. Sometimes, photographs were taken by camera and then
painted by the artists. The artists were not only encouraged to
transform the photographs into a paint picture but also instilled ideas,
assisted with art materials and equipments which were not easy to find.
This art work has been put together by Mr. Ali Said Hassan, who has
been working very hard to produce these beautiful artifacts since 1979.
In 1988, he opened Golol Art Gallery Centre in Mogadishu, the only one
art gallery in the entire country. The centre was established in order
to encourage the artists and expand the Shadow Art of Somalia to an
internationally acclaimed standard.
To achieve the objectives mentioned above, the work of Golol Art
Gallery Centre is now directed to: Collecting the pictures, restoring
and preserving them, and displaying them in the Golol Art Gallery
Centre.
Two years after the establishment of the Golol Art Gallery
Centre, Somalia’s civil war had started. Before the war, Golol Art
Gallery Centre had 138 pictures. Only 70 pictures were saved, and the
rest were looted.
These pictures gathered here are heredity to all
Somali people and humanity at large - because, it shows a history of a
whole nation on the verge of extinction both culturally and in
existence.
Derived from: Art Critic
Andrea A. Pierno
International Academy of Modern Art
Rome
Source: Keydmedia.net
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Somalia: THE SOMALIA LIFE AND CULTURE DEPICTED IN AN ARTISTIC WAY
This she-camel represents: The Somali national sovereignty. What is laden with: The national assets. The man who has the lead is: The national leader. The man who is stabbing at the neck is: The national leader. Some of the people around it are destr