On the Human Identity and Organic Materials: An Interview with Bashaer Hawasai
Bashaer Hawsawi is an artist based in Jeddah. She earned her BFA in Sculpture and Ceramics from King Abdul Aziz University in 2015. Hawsawi participated in various local and international group exhibitions in Jeddah, Abu Dhabi, and Colorado.
Hawsawi addresses different topics in her work, especially ones related to the human identity and experience. Her main inspiration stems from the environment she grew up in and the unconventional materials she used to collect and resculpt since she was a child playing in her dad’s store.
Your upbringing and the environment you were surrounded by shaped your art. Can you describe them to us, and how they contributed to your art?
We usually redecorate our entire house every year by moving various pieces of furniture and replacing them with new ones. We kept the replaced pieces, and I used to collect them in huge amounts, and I honestly didn’t know why I did that. But the mediums of these pieces varied in shape and form, so I gained a visual memory without clear intention.
Besides his daytime job, my dad also had a store that collected stuff and resold them. Alongside my artistic sense that was cultivated during elementary school by painting and decorating stuff at my school, this store shaped my practice.
Cleansing (2019)
You utilize your good skills at observing your surroundings in planning your artworks. What are some of the details and topics that attract you, and do you channel them in your work?
The mediums are usually recycled or used materiales that are also organic. Some of the most important topics that inspire me and are addressed in my art are related to the human experience and everything that characterizes it.
Many Saudi artists consider art as a side-job because of the way society looks down at artists and art. How did you challenge this view by majoring in the arts at college and making it your main career track? Who inspired and supported you along the way?
In my opinion, art is a natural response that pushes the artist towards it. So I decided to pursue art without any hesitations, and I don’t regret doing that at all.
My mother supported me along the way, and she helped me overcome many negative opinions dismissing my craft and career choice -- she is one of my mentors, and I trust her opinion a lot.
Qanfager (2020)
You use various unconventional mediums in your work, and you always try to expand them and try new things. How was your journey in exploring them, and how do you predict they’ll evolve in the future?
The art experience shapes the artist’s life. I think I always try to connect with my surroundings. I feel I’m part of everything and can speak with these mediums without a messenger.
I experiment with them and explore their capabilities and what they’re able to provide me so I can share my work with my community -- they’re my superheroes! They have great, unlimited capabilities. They allow me to do so much, and they never hesitate to answer any of my questions. They always support my curiosity and fuel my productivity. These mediums understand my attempts at expressing their beauty.
In the future, I think more advanced equipment that allows more sustainable mediums will be created. And artists then will have unlimited powers.
Your art was displayed at numerous exhibitions. Can you tell us more about what it took for your career to take off as a young emerging artist?
Starting in 2017, I promised myself to commit to creating a small piece every single day. The purpose of this decision was to challenge myself and learn more about my artistic capabilities. Thank God, everything went as expected.
I also never missed an opportunity to visit any of the exhibitions in Saudi, as well as annual ones in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, to be exposed to the different art scenes and see all of the different artworks. I ensured that I’m always surrounded by art by following art scenes around the globe and speaking directly to artists to discuss their experiences. I’ve always breathed and dreamt about art.
