Sunday 17 / November / 2024
Muscat: Oman will dispatch scores of paintings drawn by more than 100 expat children to the United Nations as part of its “Call for Peace” initiative, organisers of the art project said on Monday.
Noted Omani songwriter and intellectual Saleh Al Fahadi is leading the team of artists, who are supervising the painting workshop and mentoring the child artists in a bid to create the world record for the largest number of paintings by “children of the world” calling for peace.
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“We will use art to promote peace,” Al Fahadi told a media gathering in the capital.
Al Fahadi, the main architect of the art project, said the mission has been underway for the past three months, noting “We have representation from all six continents.”
Young expat artists, aged 8 to 15, from five different schools have joined the project, representing some 80 countries.
“The work of the children, who have expressed through their paintings their hopes and dreams for global peace, will be spread across the world,” stated Sue Tappin, one of the organisers.
Tappin, an expert on the quality and excellence framework, remarked, “We hope to create a (world) record for the largest number of paintings drawn in support of world peace and the end of conflicts.
“We have contributors from Tibet, Palestine, Kashmir, Syria, Iraq and even Venezuela and Fiji,” noted Pakistani artist Ibrahim Gailani, who is mentoring the students, told Times of Oman on the sidelines of the event.
Gailani is the founder of Gailani Art Retreat, a creative escape that claims to use art and music for self-discovery in the Sultanate.
Organisers said the paintings will first be exhibited in Oman on May 9.
Then, the foreign ministry, under Foreign Minister Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, will dispatch the artwork to UNICEF and UNESCO.
The paintings will travel across the entire world with the help of the UN agencies, they stated.
Organisers pointed out that Oman is recognised for its international peace efforts, and in sending a pictorial message across the globe, they want to communicate Oman’s support for world peace and the renunciation of wars and conflicts.
Gailani said the idea behind the project was to portray the emotions of children who have come from conflict zones and have been living in peaceful Oman for some time.
“One Syrian girl, who is only 8, has painted an eye, inside which she has placed tears and a Syrian flag. I was surprised to see the emotional pictorial messages that have been drawn on the canvas,” he noted, adding, “These children of conflict zones have strong ideas about peace.”
Saleh Al Fahadi, who also heads the Values Centre, remarked, “If we get sponsors, we will try to make this an annual event in future.”
During the gathering, the organisers also launched the project website callofpeace.com and sought further support for their efforts.
