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Craftwork
Beads and stones

Creating covetable necklaces, bracelets and earrings from materials such as coral, turquoise, quartz, onyx, pearls and rubies began as a hobby for Shoma Guptaroy and Rajni Singh. Some six months ago however, after making items for admiring friends, the hobby blossomed into an exhibition-cum-sale. Beads and Stones has flourished ever since: this month Rajni and Shoma will hold a Valentine’s Day sale, showcasing a collection dubbed ‘Many Hues of Love’ because love, they say, comes in many colours – not only red.

Rajni and Shoma have been friends for 15 years and studied jewellery-making together. Usually they make their pieces independently, dividing the stones equally between them when a shipment arrives, so that the collection features different designs and styles. Enthusiasm and friendship drive this venture: when either woman finishes working on something pleasing they are on the phone immediately. “Even if it’s late at night we call each other and say ‘Come and see!’” says Shoma. Several of their ‘Many Hues’ creations feature silver beads and bespoke pendants made up by a silversmith in Jaipur, and there is also a small collection for men. “We are so excited about our new designs,” adds Rajni.

The sale is on February 7, 4.30–7.30pm, at Curry House Restaurant, Wattayah. For details, call 99 447614 or 99 726488.

Wildlife
The Arabian leopard

Few people know that lions once stalked the dusty plains of Arabia. The formidable cat is today associated with African savannahs and safaris, with good reason, because like the cheetah and wild ass it is extinct in the Middle East.

Thousands of years ago lions captured in Arabia were transported to participate in the bloody games laid on in Athens or Rome. Trapped leopards awaited a similar fate but, astonishingly, despite centuries of human persecution and the gradual loss of their habitat, a handful of Arabian leopards remains in the peninsular to this day. Panthera pardus nimr is smaller and lighter than other leopard subspecies, and preys on animals such as gazelle, ibex and hyrax. A critically endangered subspecies, it is currently the subject of a month-long survey by Biosphere Expeditions and Land Rover in the desert mountains of the Wadi Ayun area of Dhofar. The expedition aims to establish whether or not any of these cats survive in the region, and is an extension of a research project that last year found proof of a minute leopard population in Musandam. The hope is that increased research into this elusive cat will help aid its chances of survival, thus saving it from the fate of the Arabian lion.

For further details about Biosphere Expeditions, visit www.biosphere-expeditions.org.

Mixed media
Eco-conscious creations

Artist George Lewis uses ground local sandstone in his pictures of the sultanate. The idea of combining local materials with paint came to him on a Cornish beach, when flyaway sand found its way on to one of his canvases. Happily for George, the friable stone that composes part of Muscat’s coastline and which has weathered to such striking effect is easy to grind down and mix with acrylic.

A self-taught artist, George works in a variety of media, including photography. He is a passionate environmentalist, and hopes his pictures are both a celebration of the natural world and a reminder of the destruction that threatens it. “Art is a lens through which I see the world,” he says. “I want my images to try to evoke a dialogue between man and nature.”

Although he is based in Britain, where he is currently working on a project with the English National Ballet, George frequently travels round the world; after leaving Oman he will head to Kuwait. His compositions feature in a number of private collections, including that of H M Sultan Qaboos bin Said, and are the subject of a week-long exhibition at Bait Muzna Gallery from February 5. For further details, call 24 739204 or visit www.georgelewisart.com.

Texture message
Abstraction and colour

“The main thing is texture,” says artist Radhika Hamlai. “Without it my paintings don’t have life.” Radhika’s densely coloured, textural works are abstract, although she began seven years ago by painting realistic subjects. Today, each heavily worked canvas is made up of between three and 20 or so layers of paint and sometimes other materials such as modelling paste and glue. “The day it goes to the framers is the day each piece is finished,” she says. “If it wasn’t framed I could go on painting.” Her latest series, ‘Freedom’, is on display at About Art 3, an exhibition at Bait al Baranda that opens on February 2 and also features works by Anwar Sonya, Sarah White and Maryam al Zadjali, and visiting Indian artist Amrut Patel. The idea of interacting with many artists appeals to Radhika. “I’m keen to work with different people who have different ideas and perspectives.” To this end she has many plans in the pipeline for 2008, including a painting trip to India with a group of Omani artists.
For details on About Art 3, call 24 714262.