Fatima Atfa (Abu Dhabi)
Last Wednesday evening, the Etihad Gallery in Abu Dhabi opened a solo exhibition entitled “The Golden Card” by the French artist Olivia Babel. Paintings borrowed from the features of nature in the countries of the world, expressing the capacity of its wandering, and it reflects in its gradient paintings with light intensity, an indication of the times of nature in the Emirates, in the daytime the bright golden color, then the color of the sunset and at night the reflection of light on the paintings.
Speaking to Al-Ittihad, Olivia Babel expressed her joy to visit the city of Abu Dhabi and display her works at Al-Ittihad Gallery, saying that she felt that Abu Dhabi was an inspiring city, so she worked on many paintings representing “Map of the Emirates”, emphasizing that this is her pride and an important part of her artistic career. She added: “I am French and have several roots in Africa, Asia and Latin America, so I feel a sense of belonging not only to France but to the whole world.” I work with the technique of threads and fabrics by weaving on the loom, so I drew the map of the Emirates in the form of the flag with its distinct colors, and there is a painting that represents the map of the Emirates in shades of colors that reflect different times, in the morning, at noon, at sunset and at night.
During our tour of the exhibition, we met the artist Kholoud Al-Jabri, who indicated that the Union Gallery always offers something different in each of the exhibitions it holds, so it selects distinguished exhibitions and artists whose work offers distinctive and different experiences, explains : When I received the invitation, I did not imagine how it would be the Works of Art, but when I saw the exhibited works, I was amazed by the beauty of the paintings, which are absorbed by high art, bearing much of the spirit of ancient techniques, and their companions work to recycle things, but with a different cultural and diplomatic perspective, showing that creators of all peoples look with admiration at the Emirates, and they are heading to Abu Dhabi to achieve their artworks and present their ideas in new forms and concepts. Al Jabri adds and emphasizes: We in the UAE consider these exhibitions as a form of plastic art in a beautiful spirit, because the exhibition is divided between works of “sketches” that express the spirit of the French artist, and these works of art are displayed as if they are a dialogue with the United Arab Emirates, through recycling. Because it took the map of the Emirates as a basic work on which it built many concepts, including the environment of a desert country, in addition to architecture and water.