Mawaheb hosts portraits of a special kind

Mawaheb Studio grooms artistic talents in special needs students who have now put together a mosaic at DIFC’s Art Beat.

As I dig through my bag in search of my ever-disappearing camera, Victor Sitali taps me on my shoulder and points to my front pocket, where the camera lies in full view.

“He may be deaf, but he’s certainly not blind,” Mawaheb Art Studio’s managing director Wemmy de Maaker tells Khaleej Times.

My venue is Dubai International Financial Centre and the event is Art Beat — Dubai’s platform for new and creative talents.

Showcasing its works at the four-day event is Mawaheb — the Middle East’s first art centre for adults with special needs — and Victor is one of the centre’s most promising students.

“This young man is special. He is climbing the ladder to become a solo artist,” Wemmy says.

Born deaf, 23-year-old Victor moved to Dubai from Zambia when he was just 16. Originally training to become a chef, the emerging artist found his calling after joining the centre three-and-a-half years ago.

“When Victor joined us, he, and even us at the centre, had no idea how talented he was. Then we discovered how artistic he was, so we pushed him.”

And now, with the art world no longer ignorant of Victor’s talent, the doors of opportunity have continued to open up for him throughout the whirlwind journey.

“I really have high hopes for Victor. His work is just incredible, so I really see it taking him far over the next few years,” Wemmy says.

Lucky break

After being spotted by well-known UK artist Trevor Waugh shortly after joining Mawaheb, Victor was flown over to Waugh’s studio in the UK for five weeks back in 2011, and the clash of talents resulted in the two exhibiting together at an earlier DIFC art showcase.

During the five-week stint, Victor’s love of oil painting became prominent, and since the collaboration, he has concentrated on his personal depiction of abstract oil portraits.

And when I ask how he feels when taking the brush to the canvas, a wide grin beams from Victor’s face as Wemmy translates through sign language.

“He says it makes him feel happy, and he gets excited when he starts working on a new piece. There’s a sense of satisfaction.”

Believing that a voice can be heard not merely through sound, but also via art created by his hands, Victor hopes one day the world will “hear” him, and Wemmy is confident it will.

“Living here in Dubai, there are many opportunities for people. So in Victor’s case, I hope one day he will fly far and wide.”

Tough love

Admitting to being tough on Mawaheb’s artists, Wemmy says it’s not about comforting the students because of their disability, it’s about challenging them.

“We have an array of students at our centre, but we do not define them by their disability. A disability is not something you are, it’s something you have. Each student has their own personality,” Wemmy says, before pointing to Victor.

“For instance, this is Victor. First it’s Victor, then, he is deaf. It’s about the individual, not what he or she has.”

Debuting for the first time at Art Beat, Mawaheb is displaying a collaborative mosaic, put together by about 10 of the centre’s students, depicting a colourful portrait of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, who is best known for her self-portraits.

Aiming to bridge the gap between society and individuals with special needs, Wemmy says Mawaheb gives its adult students the opportunity to pave out what before was a blank future for them, and she says events like Art Beat allow them to “showcase their talents as artists, not special needs adults”.

Concluding today, the free event is a hotspot for art and design lovers, showcasing works from great regional artists keeping the Dubai art scene in full swing.

kelly@khaleejtimes.com