At least 10,000 people have been killed in nearly two years of war in Yemen. The fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Houthi rebels has left the country in shambles. But a group of people in Sanaa are trying to send a message to politicians to end the war. And they’re doing it with color.
Street artists in Sanaa are painting the city’s walls with images of starving children. They want to highlight the hunger and poverty faced by millions of Yemenis during the country’s civil war.
Rabu, 29 Mar 2017 10:31 WIB ·
Foto: Istimewa
Dia menggandeng seniman Inggris bernama Lisa-Marie Gibbs untuk membuat peristiwa seni jalanan yang bersejarah. Sekaligus tak terlupakan di dua negara tersebut.
“Pesan dari festival ini adalah membawa pesan perdamaian. Kami sama-sama memprotes dengan cara yang artsy dan tidak membayakan siapapun,” tutur Murad Subay, dikutip dari BBC, Rabu (29/3/2017).
Simak: Gelar Pameran Bersama, Aliansyah Caniago dan Boo Ji Hyun Eksplorasi Jakarta
 Foto: Istimewa |
Di Inggris, Lisa-Marie Gibbs membuat festival serupa. Dia mengajak anak-anak kecil dan warga sipil untuk menggambar dan membawa pesan perdamaian terhadap konflik berkepanjangan Yaman.
“Murad Subay mengundang saya dan kami membuat kolaborasi dua negara ini. Simbol kupu-kupu kami gunakan untuk menjelaskan aksi kecil bisa berdampak luar biasa bagi sejarah bangsa Yaman. Baik di Inggris dan Sanaa Yaman kami membawa pesan yang sama,” tutur Lisa-Marie.
Lewat seni pula, lanjut dia, seni bisa membawa pesan yang sulit tersampaikan menjadi lebih muda. “Kami berharap orang-orang bisa menerima pesan ini dan menyebarluaskannya pada masyarakat,” pungkasnya lagi.
A warplane firing missiles. A gunman taking aim. A map of Yemen dripping with blood.
A group of Yemeni artists took to the streets Wednesday, painting murals on the wall of Sanaa University in a visual protest against three years of war.
The open-air exhibition and workshop attracted locals exhausted by a conflict with no end in sight.
“I came here with my family to express how fed up we are with the way we’re living because of the war,” said Fouad Sharfeddin.
“This event gives us a breather and hope for a return to a normal life.”
The war between pro-government forces and Shiite Huthi rebels who control Sanaa has devastated Yemen and pushed it to the brink of famine.
Since a 2015 intervention by a Saudi-led coalition, fighting has left at least 7,400 people dead and wounded 40,000, according to the United Nations.
“Yemenis are lost,” Sharfeddin’s wife Maryam said. “We try to help the kids relax, even a little, by painting to express the feelings of repression we have inside.”
A woman paints on a Sanaa wall a day after dozens of women staged a sit-in to demand an end to the country’s war. (photo by: Mohammed HUWAIS/AFP)
A young artist wrote “no dreams” next to a stencil of a child, then sat on the pavement under a mural of three heavily-armed soldiers.
Another painted a bouquet of red roses next to a soldier pointing his weapon at a collection of hearts.
The event was organised by an artists’ collective let by Mourad Soubaye, in defiance of the rebels who control the capital.
“This is a day for p eace, against violence, war and the current situation,” said Soubaye.
It followed another rare demonstration, a three-day women’s sit-in protest against the war.
The artists wrote a leaflet addressed to Sanaa residents, saying they did not take a position in the conflict.
A man works on a mural on the southern wall of Sanaa University. (photo by: Mohammed HUWAIS/AFP)
“While war divides, art unites beyond borders and barriers,” they wrote.
They called their open day “an opportunity for people express their hope for peace and their rejection of violence.”
“All we want is to get out of the crisis,” Soubaye said.
Yemenis take to the streets of Sanaa to express themselves through art as the country’s civil war rages for nearly two years.
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A group of Yemeni artists take to the streets, painting murals on the wall of Sanaa University in a visual protest against three years of war.
(15 Mar 2017) LEADIN:
A group of young Yemenis are tackling their feelings on the war through street art.
They painted the walls of a university with messages of peace in the capital Sanaa.
STORYLINE:
Sitting on the pavement this young man prepares his weapon against the civil war in Yemen.
But it’s not a rifle… it’s a tin of paint.
He’s one of dozens of Yemeni art lovers who’ve gathered in the capital Sanaa to join a street art campaign against Yemen’s devastating two-year war.
The event, dubbed “Open Day for Art”, is held every year on 15 March and is organised by street artist and political activist Murad Subai:
“Of course it is a message for peace and to renounce the political situation we are living in and also the war, hatred and the like, and for diversity. And it is also a message from the Yemeni society to politicians to find a quick solution to this catastrophic situation we are in,” he says.
Participants gather with paint and brushes in central Yemen to cover the walls of a university with messages of peace.
One artist, Haifa Subai, explains the meaning behind her painting, titled “Departing Soldiers”.
“This painting symbolises the call for peace, the end of the war and the ongoing conflict for years in Yemen.”
Another, a graphic designer called Tamam Al-Shibani, underlines the power of painting:
“Art is a great message in which we challenge political and inflammatory rhetoric calling for murder and political conflict,” he says.
The war in Yemen began in 2015 when a Saudi-led coalition waged a devastating air campaign targeting Houthi rebels who seized control of the capital.
The conflict has pushed one of the Arab world’s poorest countries to the brink of famine.
Photos of the artworks and activities of the event “Open Day of Art”, where the beautiful people from the city of Reading, UK, joined the amazing artist Lisa-Mari Gibbs in reviving the event. March 15, 2017.
هكذا كان وأنتهى هذا اليوم، بهؤلاء اليمنيين الرائعين والرائعات وآخرين لم تستطع عدسة الكاميرا شملهم. أنتهى بعد أن ترك كل منهم جزء من أرواحهم الجميلة على الجدران.
شكرا جزيلاً لكل من ساهم في صنع هذا اليوم، سواء بالرسم أو الحضور. كان يوم مميز بحضوركم جميعا.
صوره من فعالية الحدث السنوي “اليوم المفتوح للفن”, الذي أقيم على بالرسم على سور جامعة صنعاء الجديده، الجهة الجنوبية، 15 مارس 2017.
This is how the day ended! With the wonderful presence and participation of people coming from across different backgrounds, ages, and genders. The day ended after each one of them left a piece of their beautiful souls on the walls. Thank you for everyone who contributed to the success of this event, whether by showing up, painting, or showing moral support. You made this day special!
A photo from the event “Open Day of Art”, in Sana’a, Yemen, March 15, 2017
The photo was taken by photographer: Nader Al-Mowafak, Thiyazen Alalawi, Najeeb Subay.
Murad Subay 