The Mona Lisa of Sur

By Mai Al Abria — Leonardo da Vinci’s popular Mona Lisa painting has been called many things — ‘the most famous’ and ‘the most written’ among them. It’s also one of the most visited portraits at the world renown Louvre Museum in France. It has amassed a huge number of fans and with its popularity, artists from all over the world have created their own version of it as an homage to one of the great painters of all time. Salvador Dali and Andy Warhol are two of the most popular names who were inspired by Da Vinci’s work.

In Oman, artists gave themselves the same challenge Warhol and Dali embarked on. They tasked themselves to re-imagine the Mona Lisa.

Organised by Sur Arts team, a group of young and ambitious talents, launched a fine arts exhibit eponymous of the popular Da Vinci painting. The exhibition was inaugurated by Sayyid Shihab bin Harib Al Said at Sur Sports Club.

Thirty two portraits made by 15 Omani artists from Sur took centre stage with the same guiding theme, but different approaches and different interpretations.

Of the 32, artist Maryam al Tawkli’s work of art found online fame, going viral on different social media platforms.

Her re-imagination of the Mona Lisa transported the lady on the painting to Sur, dressed in one of the traditional Sur dresses and made glamorous by some of the most identifiable traditional accessories of the town.

Garbed differently than the Italian Mona Lisa, the Mona Lisa of Sur is just as mysterious, with that knowing smile still prominent upon her lips.

Asked what prompted her to style the Mona Lisa that way, Maryam shared that coming  up with the idea made a lot of sense.

She explained, “Since the theme of the exhibition is Mona Lisa and calling upon to convey the cultural and traditional legacy of Sur, I made a conscious decision to highlight the traditional Sur outfit.”

“It was clear in my head, the Mona Lisa seemed a perfect model for Sur’s traditional garment,” she added.

“I had a feeling, with the Mona Lisa’s global popularity, that dressed traditionally, she will still be recognisable and it will definitely get attention.”

She added, “When you have enough knowledge regarding international and regional artworks, ideas come to your mind easily.”

The artworks exhibited were of various genres — surrealism, realist even digital media were represented.

During the programme, the artists were rewarded for their efforts and creativity. Other artists were also encouraged to take part in future artistic endeavours within the town.