Today, I offer this glass painting that I discovered at the MADE IN JORDAN show yesterday. I believe it was called “99 Blessings.” I was captivated by it the moment we walked into this artist’s booth. The artist in question is named May Bat Hajarat. She runs a store in Amman, Jordan called Mix & Match.
The beauty of her artwork was matched only by her graciousness. She spent so much time explaining her media, which I know very little about. I love Arabic calligraphy and arabesque motifs in general when they are employed in artwork. After seeing many examples of it the summer before college when I was traveling in and around Istanbul, I was hooked! They are the reason I spent a year in college studying Arabic–somewhat unsuccessfully. They are also probably part of the reason we are living here now. Apparently, Islamic Calligraphy became a central part of the art of the Middle East when leaders became suspicious of figurative art as idolatrous. That led to calligraphy and abstract depictions becoming a major form of artistic expression. They used it to represent God because they denied representing God with images. Thank you, wikipedia. May also likes to utilize Arabic calligraphy and Islamic ornaments throughout her work because, she says, “they are very rich and unique.” I agree. I wanted, of course, to buy it, but it was just a little bit out of my price range. I think, between us, we wanted to buy about 90% of everything in her booth.
99 Blessings by May Bat Hajarat
The Artist and her work
Anyway, this post is a bit of a shout out to May Bat Hajarat. She is apparently an Electrical Enginneer by training. It is evident in her work. I love linear artwork that is very well-planned and executed. I love your artwork, May. Please keep making much, much more.