Muhammed Salayi
painting
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How did you get into the industry?
I started drawing at an early age. I mimicked my older brother, who is now an art teacher, and drew with crayons and pencils. Now I can declare art is in my blood; now I spend hours drawing and sketching.
Unfortunately I couldn’t continue my education in fine art. I wasn’t a member of the Ba’ath Party in my country, Iraq, thus I was forbidden to register. So I continued my education in a different field, graduating from the agriculture faculty at Arbil University in Kurdistan. I didn’t give up; I painted continually, honing my art skills. After my graduation, I worked in magazines and newspapers as an illustrator and cartoonist – especially for papers and magazines opposing the previous regimes in Iraq. Fine art was always my obsession and first love. So I decided to leave Iraq and continue my education abroad, and chose Canada. I immigrated to Canada in 1998. Fortunately, I found out that the Canadian environment has a similarity with my fatherland, Kurdistan. Both have the natural world of snow, mountains, and trees.
Why did you get into the industry?
I relish creating my art and transferring it to my students. I regularly teach at art schools because I like to share my knowledge. I like to share my art with the viewer as well. By painting I express my affection for Mother Nature. Art is my outlet. I don’t like to tell a story; I would rather to portray moment of life in a very special genre. I also cherish the human, thus I do my best depict the human in daily life.
Did anyone inspire you or do you have a mentor?
Mother Nature is my guide; I take all my inspirations from her. However, many great artists have had an effect on me: John Singer Sergant, Velasquez, Zorn, and Ilya Repin. I usually paint or draw on location or from life; direct contact with Mother Nature gives me a sense of beauty and purity of colour vision.
What do you feel makes you stand out from the rest?
Whenever a subject calls me to paint it, I do it without any hesitation. I don’t slavishly stick with a subject or painting medium to produce my paintings. I embrace a wide range of mediums for the art process: oil colour, watercolour, acrylics, and colour pencils. My subjects are varied: portraits, landscapes, farm animals, and urban scenes. Unfortunately, this is sometimes not supported by gallery owners, as they tend to support artists who repeatedly paint certain subjects. But I get ants in my pants if I refrain from painting a certain theme. I prefer that critics analyze my art from my brush strokes and my capacity of painting.
What have been your challenges?
I still see myself as new in this province: I moved from Ontario a year ago. So I am still finding my place among other artists in Alberta. Plus, some galleries deal with artists they know, so it takes a while for them to become familiar with me. Recently, art schools have begun to recognize my art skills. I run art classes at Northgate Lions Seniors Recreation Centre.
What do you feel is your speciality, if you have one?
I’m always looking for beauty to be transmitted to the canvas. Beauty is my obsession, and I hope to convey that motive in my chest to the viewers. In portrait art, I like to face the challenge of understanding the person I paint, so I try to navigate my model and disclose his or her individuality. Painting a portrait is more than capturing a likeness, at least for me. Several years ago I had dissimilar vision and perspective for landscape paintings; today I look at the surroundings in a very special method. I do not copy a sight from Mother Nature slavishly. An artist’s approach towards any theme should be utterly different from a camera. I strive to give some form and structure to any painting element with pigments; I do not declare impasto, yet some sort of thickness is necessary too.
What is new or cutting edge in your opinion?
The new technology of prints has changed the classic style of art market. I am thinking about giclees because they make it possible for an art piece to be seen by a wide range of audiences across the country.
Anything else you would like to share?
I strive to show Canadians my art, which is coming from the bottom of my heart. I strongly believe that art is a lifelong operation. It requires devotion and determination to create master pieces. According to this concept, you see, I don’t stop painting. I paint for pleasure and to express my feelings through the flow of art. I wish for viewers to take pleasure in my art, the same as I do.