KOBANI, Syria (North Press) – Despite the long-lasted wars and displacement that people of north and east Syria witnessed, they continued struggling against life conditions and develop their talents through opening centers for music, languages and painting courses, trying to challenge their difficult reality and prove their identity.
In a small atelier in a cellar in the city of Kobani, northern Syria, Hadil Muhammad with other young girls are busy in improving their drawing skills for months, supervised by the plastic artist Muhammad Shahin.
Ambition
Hadil is a fresh trainee in the first level; she draws with a pencil. However, she has drawn three pictures of her own since she joined the atelier, two of which were people’s faces and one was a deer’s face.
“I want to be famous in the world of drawing, and draw paintings that reflect the social condition in our region,” she told North Press.
Hadil wants to become stronger and more self-dependent.
Young talents
While Ilham Issa, another talent from Kobani who joined this atelier about two years ago, felt that she needed more to develop her skills so she joined the special course of drawing in Muhammad Shahin’s atelier in order to learn more techniques and methods of plastic art.
“I studied at the Teachers’ Training Institute for a short period as there was a shortage regarding the capacities,” Issa, who taught art in an elementary school, told North Press.
She added that in the atelier she recognized new method and style for drawing which made it easy for her to move into advanced levels.
“At the beginning, I painted with a pencil. Shahin explained the art in a different way,” she said.
Her preferable kind of drawing is the things that have connection with her community.
“I want to draw social and folkloric paintings. I was affected by the Kobani war. The devastating areas remind me my childhood.”
Meanwhile the deteriorating livelihood conditions after the collapse of the Syrian currency affected the purchase capacities of trainees in the light of the high price of the colours and the costs of paintings.
Five years of difficulties
Muhammad Shahin opened the atelier five years ago, after he decided to live in Kobani that he left for years, and wanted to improve and develop the talents in his city.
“I wanted to help my people in Kobani by sharing my talent with them,” he said.
Before his return, Shahin lived in Aleppo where he lost more than 50 paintings of his own due to the Syrian war.
Later, the artist held two exhibitions, one in 2018 and the other in 2019, while he has not held any in 2020 yet due to Covid-19 pandemic.
The number of trainees reached about 70; however, it declined to about 40, according to Shahin.
Shahin is planning to open a stall, where trainees’ paintings will be sold in order to urge them to paint.
Additionally, he wishes to open an Art and Culture Complex including special sections to teach sculpture, music, languages, and a small café that collects all those interested in cultural affairs.
“I must continue my work in order to develop and improve the skills of my trainees,” he added.