It is one of my greatest joys to collaborate and work alongside people that share the same creative and artistic vision as I do. I have recently had the pleasure of collaborating with Hotel Indigo in Downtown Dubai to create a series of artworks that perfectly encapsulates my current ethos as a creative.
The series, entitled The Voyageur, is partially inspired by the Hotel’s eclectic design and its thematic focus on the spirit of travel and adventure. I was happy to see my creative vision align with the ethos and design of the hotel. Being known for its eclectic showcasing of original art, design and installations, I knew that collaborating with Hotel Indigo would be a creatively rewarding endeavour.
The Voyageur consists of a large-scale centrepiece artwork which is an acrylic painting on canvas with five separate artworks extricated from it. These five artworks, known as The Fragments, are presented as 25 limited editions digital prints that are sold along with their corresponding NFTs.
Regarding the character that is at the heart of this series, The Voyageur is someone that I conjured up in my imagination who perfectly personified a fearless explorer. I wanted the Voyageur to be an homage to the spirit of the adventurous traveller, who lives beyond the fear of the unknown and navigates fantastical places that exist in realms of their own. So, when I started to plan and create the artwork, I found myself visualizing a woman at the culminating moment of her voyage as she reaches her destination after overcoming many unseen obstacles.
Visually, I wanted the entire series to take the viewer on a visual journey where fantasy meets history and technology merges with magic. This visual inspiration partially came from Hotel Indigo’s interior design, as I found it to be incredible creative and artistically stimulating. In order to create this visual magic, I incorporated motifs and elements that were dramatic enough to warrant their own separate artwork. So, the Five fragments became the contemplative Voyageur, the Arabesque city of the Future, the mysterious nine-tailed Fox (Kitsune), and the majestic Vessels of the Skies and Seas. All characters and elements that can be easily spotted in the centrepiece artwork.
With the Arabesque City of the Future taking up most of the horizon in the main artwork, I wanted it to be the perfect amalgamation of the past and the future. The colourful domes of buildings with mysterious inhabitants and secret arches of twisting alleyways, the City invites those who have curiosity and the spirit of adventure coursing through their veins. The Arabesque influences in the City’s architecture are unmissable, further adding to its spiritual and cosmic aura.
Then you have the Kitsune, a mythical creature that resembles a fox with nine tails belongs to Japanese folklore which is thousands of years old. Considered incredibly powerful and mischievous, the Kitsune appears alongside the Voyageur to examine the sprawling horizon that lies beyond. Its nine tails are meant to indicate the immense paranormal force that lies within the majestic Kitsune.
With the majestic vessels of the Sea and Skies, I wanted to have the viewers question the direction that they are headed in: why should one sail against the current and risk losing themselves in the struggle? Why cannot one work with the currents of Life and be guided to a path and destiny unexplored? And whether the Sky is truly the limit?
The Voyageur collection is currently being exhibited at the Hotel Indigo till the 20th of February 2023 offering a completely unique and immersive art experience. I hope that if you can, you will drop by to see these artworks in-person and find yourself longing to embark on a voyage of your own which takes you to a place beyond your fears, doubts and limitations.
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Check my digital artwork collection here.