Kuwaiti visual artist Alymamah Rashed (Instagram) explores identity and the natural environment through the story of her body.
For those meeting you for the first time, introduce yourself and tell what it is that you do.
My name is Alymamah Rashed. I am a painter and storyteller based in Kuwait. I birth recreations of my body and soul to create a union for you and I.
What themes are present at the heart of your practice? Are there any sites of inspiration that you often find yourself returning to?
My practice is always exploring the different methods I am able to produce when it comes to my body as a singular entity and in relation to the soul. I also explore the notion of bodifying the soul. Through the body and the soul’s convergence and separation, I am able to reclaim and own my body beyond femininity and masculinity. In other words, I seek to paint the fragrance of my essence.
I explore topics of identity and the natural environment through the story of my body. I am invested in the fluctuation that occurs within the tangibility of the body, the intangibility of the soul, and reversing their roles within one another. My practice negotiates my female subjectivity in relation to regional folklore, the banal objects I encounter everyday, and spiritual intelligence.
The fluidity of bodily forms is ever present in your paintings. What is the role of the body in your work?
The body aims to live within itself through creating difference in repetition, and attempts to escape itself to expand its territory beyond its physical presence. My body moves in circles. My body intertwines within itself to caress itself. My body escapes itself to marry life.
How did art become your chosen tool of exploration and expression? Was it a practice that you nurtured from early on in life?
I have been creating art since I was four years old, due to my parents. They made sure to nurture my interests through their own essence. My baba and I used to illustrate and invent stories and zines together. My mama and I used to colour together. We would always paint an image of a woman sitting on a park bench, surrounded with tulips, and she’s always looking at the sun. I felt connected to express my selfhood through art because I felt free. Growing up, I had a difficult time in school due to bullying. Art became my sweet escape, along with writing.
Walk us through your creative process. Does it begin directly on the canvas?
My process starts with a fleeting thought or a sight from my every day. I have a saying that I share with others: “Good things come in twos”. I would notice two doves, two humaith flowers blooming on the sidewalk, two seashells from Failaka, and so on. I would document these sightings on my phone and would think about my relationship to these experiences. I would then converge the forms and my body to them and would directly paint my gestures on the canvas. I never sketch my works beforehand. I want to surprise myself. I never want to predict what comes next.
What message would you like your body of work to communicate?
I want to offer you and I freedom. I want to gift you and I affinity. I want to paint for you and I. You and I are one. What is the shape of our union?
Tell us about a highlight in your journey that you hold close.
When I had my first solo show in the region with Tabari Artspace during COVID and was still able to feel the love and light from the region through my phone screen, since I was not able to attend due to the lockdown in Kuwait.
What do you wish for the future of your practice and for yourself?
I hope to revive my story and yours through presence. I hope to create renewal. I hope to be the dew drop on a blooming red rose.
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