Proceeds from gala auction to go to Shaffalah Special Needs School
Doha - 4th June, 2008 - The well-known figurative German artist, Nidhi Wiesner, will exhibit her latest series of semi-abstract paintings in the 'Festival of the Senses' at The Ritz Carlton Hotel, Doha from the 3rd to 8th of June, 2008. The well travelled and widely exhibited artist is displaying her works in the Lower Lobby of The Ritz Carlton and is donating the proceeds from one of her most vibrant works, 'Five Senses' to the Shaffalah Centre for Children with Special Needs in Doha. Wiesner graduated from the Fine Art School in Cologne and has shown her works all over the world including Gemany, Spain, England and Australia. 'Festival of the Senses' will be the artist's first showing in Qatar.
'I've always been deeply involved in the spiritual magnetism of the East and in my travels across India, Nepal and Qatar, I have found a lot of inspiration in my every day experiences. The thoughts that come as a result of meditation and travelling have led to some of my most thought-provoking and abstract works,' the artist explains. 'I often leave my paintings untitled so as to allow viewers to derive their own meaning from them. I think it leads to a richer and more fulfilling experience if people are left to interpret shapes, colours and outlines in my works, on their own.'
Ranging from experimental works featuring bold and colourful hazes, fuzzy shapes and simple outlines, Wiesner has developed her style to become one of abstract realism, where the onlooker can make out certain aspects of the painting vividly, but then has to work out the others. With a range of works based on landscapes in Australia, the artist discovered a new view on the world and began experimenting with different media for her visual creations.
'I have used earth tones and earth matter in my works. With warm browns and red paints, I try to capture the emotion of the earth and I've even used soil and twigs to give my paintings a three-dimensional realism and texture to draw viewers in,' says the inspired artist. 'Now that I have moved to Qatar and have settled here with my husband, I am looking forward to drawing from the vast landscapes and nature all around me for new expressions.'
The Ritz Carlton is proud to be exhibiting the works of the now local artist at their newest calendar feature entitled 'Festival of the Senses'. 'The Ritz Carlton has always been a keen proponent of the arts and we are very happy that Nidhi Wiesner has chosen to exhibit her works at our hotel for our latest event,' enthused Lauren Fryer, Director of Public Relations at the Ritz Carlton. 'We are also extremely pleased with the artist's decision to donate proceeds of one of her most interesting works at a Gala Auction to The Shaffalah Centre for Children with Special Needs. The centre focuses on educating children with disabilities to give them a better start in life and contributions like these from Ms. Wiesner are a great boost to their efforts.'
Qatar's art scene has experienced a resurgence in recent years with the opening of an art gallery at The Souq Waqef last month and the launch of the Museum of Islamic Art in 2008. With more exhibitions slated to feature on the culture and arts calendar of Doha, Qatar is witnessing a new era in the world of painting, sculpture and installation art.
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© Press Release 2008
