Shahd Alhamdan

Saudi Gazette

 

A Group Exhibition is an art event that helps several Saudi artists explore the use of Arabic language at Athr Gallery in Alserafi Mega Mall from the 23rd of January until the 28th of March.



In this exhibition, a room has been transformed into a barber shop to stress the issue of influence of  Non- Arabic speakers on the Arabic Language.



Artist Ibrahim Abumsmar has posted around four pictures that show Arabic sentences regularly used by expats from Philippines and Indians in Saudi Arabia.



Abumsmar said: “The idea came to my mind when I was in the barber shop and the Bangladesh barber was telling me his life story with his new Arabic language.



I wanted to tell him to stop speaking and that is what I wrote in the mirror ‘Sadek Mafe gorgor kater’.



Since the idea came to me in the barber shop I wanted the visitor to live in the same atmosphere that I lived in for awhile.



I did this work to discuss the subject of the weakness of the language of the street and everyday places in the barber salon and groceries.”



Abumsmar was born in Saudi Arabia in 1976 and is an accomplished athlete who participated in many local and regional swimming competitions.



He later pursued his interest in art and photography and undertook several courses.



In the barber shop that is created by Abumsmar, the visitors will find a couch were they can sit to enjoy Arabic music that comes from an old unclear TV, stating the idea that the Arabic language has been disturbed by other languages, so new Arabic language has taken its place.



Abumsmar used an Ottoman chair to stress the idea that the Arabic language was very strong in the period of Umayyad, Abbasid, and Ottoman eras until the period of Ataturk who stopped Arabic teachings in schools.



“The first Arabic tune was created by the Bedouins between the era of the Umayyad and Abbasids.



They were afraid that the Arabic language will be affected so they taught Arabic grammar and other Arabic sciences in school. For that reason they had a powerful civilization until the end of the Ottoman Empire. When Ataturk became the president, he put a stop to the Arabic language and the language weakened since then,” he added.



Unfortunately, Arabs do not take care of their language compared to Europeans. “I was sitting in a restaurant in Paris and ordered a meal.



The waiter kept correcting my French pronunciation. But here Indians attend the Friday sermons and  they do not understand the speech.



They wait for someone to translate Arabic into Urdu at the end of the speech. So I wrote this sentence in the restaurant after visiting it for three months and took this picture to express the idea of not taking care of our language.”



Artists have an indirect influence on history if they do not influence their societies. “Artists use art aiming to find themselves and for the truth.



I hope this barber shop will affect the community, but  if  I fail the idea will still be documented as history. People will know when this new language had its influence on Arabic,” Abumsmar added.