Eid Spirit

As Eid is approaching, I would like to take this opportunity to say Eid Mubarak to you all. For this wonderful occasion, I thought I'd post this amazing painting by Ali Akbar Sahiwala, a friend and an architecture student that I believe one day will be among the "starchitects" that future generations will look up to.

I think Mecca has a unique spatial characteristic that is captured beautifully in this painting. As you can see from the painting above, and the aerial view below, taken by photographer AbdulRahman Roslan (I think), the white marbles that cover the floors and most of the walls, the white ihrams of pilgrims and the intense lighting system within the holy site illuminate this space adding to its grand status. Of course as a Muslim, I believe that there is a divine intervention that contribute to the captivating light within this holy site.

A Portrait

I stumbled upon this interesting portrait series of the Luney Toons and for some reason I couldn't stop thinking about how powerful caricatures could be...

When I see this portrait I don't see a cartoon character... I see a charming, intelligent, and most importantly confident rabbit that I really admire... I wish I could be that confident... the look at his eye... his arrogant smile... his posture...

Guess how much does this portrait cost???????? $995!!!!! It's a limited edition which is out of stock now and was created by the animator Harry Sabin and background artist Alan Bodner. Each print is on a framed 27 X 20.5 canvas and is hand signed by the artists.

Other powerful cartoons and caricatures that come to my mind are those found in the notorious MAD magazine... especially what I consider the most famous face in the world... and that's Alfred E. Neuman face. No one can forget the caricatures depicting our Prophet Mohammad(SAW) in that Danish newspaper and all the controversy and riots it created... a great example of how powerful caricatures can be.

But the cartoon that make every adult turn into a 4 years old kid no matter how old you are has got to be the best cartoon ever.... Tom & Jerry...I remember watching it with my dad when I was a kid and he would be cracking up more than I did... hell we still laugh at it today until our stomach hurt as if we never saw it before.