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Shatha Altowai
شذى التوي
Shatha Altowai (2019), Photo by: Omar Alobidy
Born (1989-10-21) October 21, 1989 (age 35)
Yemen
NationalityYemeni
Years active2014–present
Known forVisual art, painting
SpouseSaber Bamatraf
AwardsArtist Protection Fund Fellowship Award (2020-2021)
Websitehttps://www.shathaaltowai.com/

Shatha Altowai (شذى التوي) is Edinburgh-based Yemeni visual artist whose work reflects aspects of her life and the suffering caused by the ongoing civil war in Yemen. She is widely known for her paintings that address issues such as identity, internally displaced persons (IDPs), women, children, and family. She is also recognised for her artistic collaboration and activism with her husband, the Yemeni pianist and composer Saber Bamatraf.[1][2][3][4]

Altowai has received many awards, this includes the IIE-Artist Protection Fund award, which enabled her to move to Scotland after her art activism in Yemen was suspended in 2018 due to death threats she and her husband received. The fellowship was hosted at the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities (IASH) within the University of Edinburgh from 2020 to 2021.[1] She also won The John Byrne Award for the first quarter of 2021, [5][6][7] and The Scottish Women's Award 2022 in the Arts and Culture category.[8][9][10] [11][12] [13][14]

She has been based in Edinburgh since November 2020.[15][16]

Early Life and Education

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Shatha Altowai was born in 1989 in Aden to a Hadhrami family descending from Shibam. She spent most of her life in the Yemeni capital, Sana'a, where she completed her schooling. In 2014, she graduated with a Bachelor of Information Technology with Honours from Universiti Utara Malaysia, studying at its Sana'a branch[17]. During her university years, she met her future husband, Saber Bamatraf, who was also pursuing the same degree. The couple married in August 2014[18], just a month before the fall of Sana'a to the Houthi rebels, a key event in the escalation of the yemeni civil war.[19][3]

Early Career in Yemen

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After her graduation in 2014, Altowai worked in various administrative and IT roles for local organisations while gradually practicing art alongside her husband. By 2017, she decided to leave her professional career entirely and focus fully on her artistic pursuits.[17][1]

In several interviews, Altowai has stated that her connection with art began during her early childhood, with her paintings often displayed in the hallways of her school, earning her the nickname "the violet painter."[20][17][4] However, as she grew older, her artistic passion waned due to the lack of art schools in Yemen her focus shifting to adolescence and studies. She credits her marriage in 2014 as the catalyst for rediscovering her artistic spirit, inspired by her husband’s musical compositions on the piano.[20][17][1][21]

The couple began their artistic journey together by hosting small-scale events, gradually moving to public venues like the Basement Cultural Foundation and TEDx events. Their collaborative performances, which combined Altowai's paintings with Bamatraf's piano compositions, quickly gained popularity and marked the beginning of their shared artistic journey.[17][22][23][4][24]

Struggle During Wartime

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In July 2015, Altowai’s house was damaged in a Saudi-led Coalition airstrike that hit a neighbouring building,[19][3] forcing her and her husband to become displaced.[25][3][18] According to Altowai and Bamatraf, navigating the public sphere as an artistic couple in Yemen posed substantial challenges, particularly due to the country’s conservative and patriarchal norms,[22][21] which often restrict women's participation in public life and artistic expression. The ongoing conflict further complicated these dynamics, creating an intensified environment for artists.[24][21]

Despite these hardships, Altowai continued to participate in various artistic and public events across Yemen alongside her husband. She has often described her art as a form of resilience and self-expression, allowing her to navigate and confront the challenges posed by the war and societal constraints.[7][3][22]

Voice of the Rainbow (2018) and its Aftermath

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Voice of the Rainbow (2018) poster
بوستر فيلم صوت قزح

Altowai's story and her artistic collaboration with her husband Bamatraf gained wider attention and were featured in a short documentary titled صوت قزح (translated as Voice of the Rainbow) [17][3], which was selected to be screened at the Karama Human Rights Film Festival that was supposed to take place in Sana'a in October 2018.[26]

The poster for the film, depicting Altowai and her husband surrounded by art and music materials, sparked controversy among the Houthi rebel group[26], leading to a cyberbullying campaign against the couple and the festival.[3] As a result, the festival was suspended by Houthi authorities, and Altowai and Bamatraf faced death threats and harassment, forcing them to suspend their public art practice during their remaining time in Yemen. [3][26][27][28][29][30][31][32]

A New Chapter in Edinburgh

[edit]

In November 2021, Shatha Altowai relocated to Edinburgh after receiving the Artist Protection Fund Fellowship Award, with Edinburgh serving as her host city[4][24][1]. This opportunity enabled her to resume her artistic endeavours and create new collections of work,[16] including the Family Series,[3] which earned her the first prize in the John Byrne Award for four paintings from the series.[5][7] Another notable collection she developed during this period was Scratched Identities.[16]

Altowai’s work was showcased in several exhibitions, including The White Canvas exhibition in July 2021 at the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities (IASH), where she presented the entire set of the Family Series.[33] Additionally, she exhibited Scratched Identities in collaboration with Art27Scotland, a project that garnered support from several MSPs[16]. As part of this collaboration, Altowai and her husband co-created a short play titled Saber Came to Tea. In this production, the couple performed the main roles. [34][2][35]

Following the completion of her fellowship, Altowai joined Art27Scotland as an artist-in-residence in 2022.[24] During this time, she re-presented the play Saber Came to Tea at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August 2022, where it ran for two consecutive days.[2][36] That same year, her artistic contributions were recognised with The Scottish Women’s Award for Art and Culture.[10][11][12][13] Moreover, a segment of her story with her husband, featured in BBC Scotland’s Loop (Series 4, Episode 3), was named a finalist in the Refugee Festival Scotland Media Awards 2022.[37]

In 2023, Altowai began a residency at Edinburgh Printmakers, where she explored printmaking for the first time. During this residency, she created an artwork entitled Monument of Loss, which was exhibited at the Uprooted Visions exhibition at Edinburgh Printmakers in May 2023.[38][15] This was followed by her participation in Reflections on Exile and Displacement from Institute of Middle Eastern, Central Asia and Caucasus Studies (MECACS) at the University of St Andrews.[39][40] She also led a community art project with women from diverse backgrounds in Edinburgh, culminating in an art installation titled Inherited Incantations, which was showcased at the Festival of Migration in June 2023.[24]

Altowai further expanded her artistic reach by joining the musical ensemble The Other as a visual artist-in-residence. She created digital visual artworks that served as backdrops for the ensemble’s live performances during the Migration Festival. Her collaboration with the ensemble continued into 2024, including a notable performance at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where she and her husband joined the ensemble on stage and brought a multi-media piece called Just Like Her Mum.[41][42]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Shatha Altowai: Artist Profile". Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities (IASH), University of Edinburgh. 2021. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  2. ^ a b c "Edinburgh Festival Fringe enjoys slice of Yemeni life with Saber Came to Tea". The National. 2022-08-06. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Yemen to Edinburgh - Our Journey to Creative Freedom, Loop". BBC Scotland. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  4. ^ a b c d "الجزيرة هذا الصباح - لماذا يظهر إبداع العربي بوضوح في المهجر والغربة؟". AlJazeera TV. 2021. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  5. ^ a b "Shatha Altowai wins the John Byrne Award". 2021. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
  6. ^ "Rising Stars in the Art World". Saatolog. 2021. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  7. ^ a b c "الفنانة اليمنية شذى التُوي تفوز بجائزة "جون بيرن" في اسكتلندا" (in Arabic). العربي. 2021-07-25. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  8. ^ "Finalists at the Scottish Women's Awards 2022 Are Revealed". Creative Oceanic. 2022-08-31. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  9. ^ "The Winners of the 4th Scottish Women's Awards 2022 Are Revealed". Creative Oceanic. 2022-10-27. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  10. ^ a b الفنانة اليمنية شذى التوي تفوز بثاني جائزة مرموقة في اسكتلندا (in Arabic). Almughtarib TV. 2022-11-06. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  11. ^ a b "إنجازات المرأة اليمنية المتوجة وسط الخراب" (in Arabic). الوطن اليوم. 2024-11-30. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  12. ^ a b شذى التوي.. اليمنية الحاصلة على جائزة المرأة الأسكتلندية من بين آلاف المشاركات (in Arabic). Belqees TV. 2022-11-02. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  13. ^ a b "اليمنية شذى التوي تفوز بثاني جائزة مرموقة من إسكتلندا" (in Arabic). الأيام. 2022-10-28. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  14. ^ "فتاة حضرمية تحصد جائزة المرأة الاسكتلندية" (in Arabic). صحافة 24. 2022-10-28. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  15. ^ a b "Visions of a Life: Uprooted Visions at Edinburgh Printmakers". The Skinny. 2021. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  16. ^ a b c d "Yemeni artist finds creative haven in Scotland". The Scotsman. 2021-10-07. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  17. ^ a b c d e f "الفن من منظور جديد بعد سنوات من ممارسته في الحرب" (in Arabic). الوطن اليوم. 2021-09-01. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  18. ^ a b "شذى وصابر بين الحب والفن والحرب" (in Arabic). Monte Carlo Doualiya. 2020-06-05. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  19. ^ a b "When the Music Stops: Yemen, Art and War, Documentary on Raytheon selling weapons to Saudi Arabia". Declassified UK. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  20. ^ a b "The Creative Process of Love and Art". Al Madaniya Magazine. 2018-10-10. Retrieved 2024-12-23.
  21. ^ a b c "تقرير برنامج شبابيك: نساء يكسرن العادات والتقاليد". Al Araby TV. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  22. ^ a b c "اليمن.. فن وحرب ورومانسية". Alhurra TV. 2024. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  23. ^ "اليمن ... فن وحرب وأرامل". مأرب برس - علي سالم - الحياة. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  24. ^ a b c d e "Finding home through art". Edinburgh Global, University of Edinburgh. 2024. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  25. ^ "I Have Met the Enemy (and the Enemy Is Us) review – ticking bomb of Britain's arms trade". The Guardian. Retrieved 2024-12-18.
  26. ^ a b c "افتراق الحب والفن في قاموس تجار الدين في اليمن" (in Arabic). جلوبال فويسز. 2018-10-21. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  27. ^ "عدن تحتفل بتراث الشعوب والحوثي يوقف مهرجاناً للسينما في صنعاء" (in Arabic). نيوز يمن. 2018-10-04. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  28. ^ ""كرامة اليمن" للأفلام القصيرة: إلغاء واتهامات" (in Arabic). العربي الجديد. 2018-10-06. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  29. ^ "مليشيا الحوثي تلغي مهرجان كرامة اليمن لافلام حقوق الانسان والسبب صورة!" (in Arabic). اليمن الاتحادي. 2018-10-04. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  30. ^ "بسبب "صوت قزح " جماعة الحوثي تمنع مهرجانا فنيا في صنعاء" (in Arabic). المشاهد. 2018-10-03. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  31. ^ "الحوثيون يمنعون تنظيم مهرجان للأفلام القصيرة بصنعاء" (in Arabic). العاصمة أونلاين. 2018-10-04. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  32. ^ "بسبب "بوستر الفيلم " جماعة الحوثي تمنع مهرجان فني في صنعاء" (in Arabic). يمن الآن. 2018-09-29. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
  33. ^ "IASH Annual Report 2020-2021" (PDF). Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities, University of Edinburgh. 2021. p. 12. Retrieved 2024-12-23.
  34. ^ "Saber Came to Tea". Scottish Council on Archives. 2024. Retrieved 2024-12-23.
  35. ^ "الموروث اليمني على خشبة مسرح إسكتلندي" (in Arabic). شباب هاوس. 2021-10-17. Retrieved 2024-12-23.
  36. ^ ديوان بلقيس (in Arabic). Belqees TV. 2023-12-12. Retrieved 2024-12-23. {{cite AV media}}: Text ""صابر بامطرف".. فنان يقدم الموسيقى اليمنية بشكل معاصر للعالم" ignored (help)
  37. ^ "Refugee Festival Scotland Media Awards 2022 shortlist announced". Scottish Refugee Council. 2022-05-31. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  38. ^ "Uprooted Visions". Edinburgh Printmakers. 2023. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
  39. ^ "Exile and displacement exhibition comes to St Andrews". University of St Andrews. 2023-05-17. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  40. ^ "Exile and displacement exhibition comes to St Andrews". University of St Andrews. 2023-05-17. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  41. ^ "Interview: The Other". Fest Magazine. 2024-07-27. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  42. ^ "Interview: Ian Mackechnie, 'The Other'". Theatre and Tonic. 2024-07-27. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
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