The Art House in Ibb was the first of its kind in Yemen. It was a starting point for other Art houses which were also built in Sana'a, Aden, Taiz, Dhamar and recently in Hodayidah. Long time ago, it was just a small dream of a few plastic artists. It was the idea of the Ibbian artists, Mr. Yasser Al-'Ansi, the current manager at the Art House, and Mr. Nabil Al-Kahsah, the financial and administrative manager.
They kept cherishing this dream until it was realized during the "Cultural Days of Ibb Province", an event that was associated with Sana'a being the Arab Culture Capital in 2004.
Some of these artists met the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Khaled Al-Rowaishan. They forwarded their proposition to establish an Art House in the city of Ibb as an umbrella for provincial plastic artists. The Minister admiringly hailed the idea directing the concerned authority to support the project fully calling it "The Art House." It is also worthwhile to mention that Ibb province has undertaken the "mural-project" which is considered to be the first unique experience in Yemen. Many artists work at drawing amazing pictures on the walls of the old city.
In cooperation with the Art Education Department in Ibb University, the Art House organizes the Arts Rendezvous. The event, which will be attended by many representative artists, is an important opportunity for young artists for the exchange of ideas and experiences. Ibbian participants have affirmed that this event requires great effort in order to produce excellent work that reflects the reputation of Ibb as the "Tourist Capital".
Raja'a Far'ra, an artist as well as a recent teacher in the Art Education Department, expressed her sentiments. "We are very excited and we have a lot of work to do. Each artist has to draw six paintings minimum." She added." The Art House in Ibb came to unite the artists and their paintings under one ceiling." The idea was to establish the building in the old city, believing that a historical site will attract tourists as well as local visitors.
Many plastic artists believe that the Art House has served them much. "We have suffered a lot, in the Art Education Department” says Ms. Raja’a, “there is no single room for drawing. Now things are different. In the Art House everything is available and people there are helpful and cooperative.”
When asked about the role of female artists, Miss Raja'a expressed her worries saying, "Traditions here are still controlling the artist’s development, let alone if she was a female artist! Add to this the area surrounding the Art House in such a traditional site like the old city; this might be the reason behind the females avoiding from coming here frequently." Many female artists believe that it would be better to establish the house in a place in which they can be saved from people's tongues.
In addition to the above hindrances, the female artist has neither much time nor many options. "We cannot stay longer than two hours, but drawing a simple picture requires a lot of time". The Ibbian female artist is stuck between three: place, companion and time that ends close to Al-Majreb prayer. Accordingly, the contributions of female artists are very few in comparison to the male artist who enjoys more liberty and gains better respect.
Plastic Art may not have a good reputation in Yemen and the female artist may be ignored and her reputation may be tarnished. Therefore, convincing some conservative minds is not an easy task but it's not impossible either. In any way, the soul of a female artist is full of life and hope. It exists in those murals where her brush plays a magical tune making an idea of yesterday a reality today.
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