author - oman observer

I have a special affection for the town of Ibra, in Al Sharqiyah North Governorate, as it was my first posting in Oman. I admit it came as a shock to stand on the front steps of my house on the day of...

It has been twenty-five years since I last walked the Riyam-Muttrah mountain track. I was going through my ‘Portuguese Phase’ back then and wanted to photograph Muttrah Fort from an unusual angle....

In days of old, the people who farmed Wadi Bani Habib lived in what appear to be two stone villages, now deserted, perched on the steep sides of the valley, though from what I understand they were...

The Ottoman Dynasty was founded at the end of the 13th century when an Oghuz Turkish tribal leader by the name of Osman Gazi rebelled against the Seljuk Turks in northwest Anatolia. Osman Gazi, known...

Clive Gracey - clivegracey@yahoo.co.uk - It is not widely known that the Sultanate of Oman is generously endowed with prehistoric rock art. Much of it is to be found etched or pecked onto large...

CLIVE GRACEY - www.clivegracey.squarespace.com - If you have visited the palace cum fortress of Jibreen, near Bahla in Al Dakhiliya Governorate, built by the Ya’arubi Imam Bil’arab bin Sultan...

Clive Gracey - clivegracey@yahoo.co.uk - It may come as a surprise to some that Stal Gallery, Muscat’s premier venue for exhibiting experimental and conceptual art, is opening the season with an...

By Clive Gracey — I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, “How come this nincompoop Clive continues taking photographs of derelict buildings and waffling on ad nauseam about Photography,...

By Clive Gracey — Compared to these peculiar periodicals, the magazines I enjoy seem rather staid. I am one of those lonely men who lurk in bookstore magazine racks, thumbing through Photography...

By Clive Gracey — A couple of weeks ago, I was looking through my bourgeoning archive of photographic negatives and slides in search of a particular image I took about 35 years ago which I intended...

By Clive Gracey — Regarding the invention of photography, three names tower above all others. Credit for the first photograph goes to the Frenchman, Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, who in 1826 or 1827...

By Clive Gracey — Whenever I go on a photography trip to Al Hamra, I invariably park my car in front of this old house. Over the years, I have become rather fond of this simple mud-brick dwelling...