Q&A with Artist Alaa Satir
Tell us a little about your background and journey as an artist:
I think my journey started very early on, as a kid who liked to draw and do things with my hands, but I didn’t start taking this seriously as a career option until I graduated from architecture school. Since then, I have been letting my work take various forms and exist in many different ways. I gradually found a visual language that I enjoy using and developing, but I like to work in many different formats, from cartoons to textiles to murals.
What is your latest work, The dancers’ garden, about?
The dancers’ garden is an interactive installation in the garden of The Mosaic Rooms, set up for children to play and explore. The artwork is inspired by my fictional tale of two dancers who, from a place near the river Nile, traveled across many countries following a singing bird that finally led them to a beautiful garden, where they settled down and hung their instruments around the garden’s fence. There, they were able to share their music and art with everyone who would visit. I wanted the artwork to have a story that would help children engage with it and encourage their creativity.
This was my first installation and it was very rewarding to see how my figures translate as 3D interactive objects, and to have a space utilised to tell parts of their story.
Your work gained a lot of attention during the Sudanese revolution in 2018, what was it like to be an artist in Sudan at that time?
The revolution was a great thing to witness and be part of and it allowed me to be able to display my work in more of a public setting. Murals were always something that I wanted to try out and am very grateful that my very first murals were painted during that time and allowed me to support and celebrate the women who were leading the way.