Saddaf Saeed
Place of birth: United Kingdom
Current location: Manchester & Dubai
Email: qalb_art@hotmail.com
Instagram: @qalb_art/
Facebook: Qalb_art-by-Saddaf-2162699060715049/
Tiktok: https://tiktok.com/@qalb_art/
Saddaf Saeed, born in 1981, is a contemporary artist, from the United Kingdom and currently splits her time in her residences in Manchester (UK), and in Dubai (UAE). Having gained a GCSE in Art & Design, she has also achieved her eminence in Law & Mathematics. She has nevertheless always surprised the art fraternity and attracted many appreciations and recognitions from the Art Industry. Her paintings have been exhibited in the UAE, UK, Turkey, Mauritius and most recently in Italy. Saddaf was selected to represent the UK for International Women’s Arts Day 2019 and featured in the book ‘Women Artists Around The World’. Earlier this year, she was awarded a Certificate of Recognition as an Outstanding Artist in the UAE from H.E. Suhail Mohammad Al Zarooni. Being a commercially successful artist, her creations have rooted inspiration, as her works form part of the private collections of both local and international Art lovers and collectors.
Opalicious
If you were to be interviewed by the press (TV/Radio) with your artwork – how would you describe your work to stand out from other exhibitors?
Saddaf is a self-taught multidisciplinary artist. She creates 3D paintings and sculptures working with an array of mediums including resin, semi-precious gems, acrylics, crystals, glass, glitter, and cosmetic pigments. Saddaf has a unique style from other resin artists as she pushes the boundaries of resin, combining it with different mediums, and her work continues to evolve. Her work is made to capture the light from different angles, creating a different look, mood and feel as the light shifts throughout the day.
99 Jewels - Earthy b
1. Where do you get your inspiration?
My work is internally driven, and emotionally charged. It is influenced by my faith, spirituality, nature and all things sparkly. My artistic journey has been a spiritual one, as I explore my spirituality I create more and as I create more I become more spiritual. My pieces are designed to stir the heart and to create the sense of awe and inspiration one may feel when surrounded by nature and its treasures and the awakening of ones spirituality.
2. What does your work aim to say
My work doesn’t aim to say, but to make the viewer feel. There is a story, a very personal story behind each piece of my art, but the art itself is a representation of the emotions that I experienced as oppose to the actual events. My story, my journey is different to the viewer, they may or may not have experienced something similar, but where we can connect is in the experience of these emotions. Emotions are the one thing that humans have undisputedly in common, in their existence they are free of gender, race, religion or politics etc. We all feel happy, sad, anger, fear, love albeit in different ways and for different reasons, but the bottom line is we feel. My art alias ‘Qalb’ in Arabic means the heart that stirs, and this encompasses the very essence of my work. I want to entice the viewer to think, feel and to be present here and now.
Saddaf Saeed- Calm After The Storm
3. I know my artwork is finished when
I don’t aim for perfection, but I do like to make pieces that are aesthetically beautiful even if the art represents a negative emotion, however I can’t stop there. I know when I am finished when I stand back and look at my work and something inside me stirs, I feel a rush of emotions and I feel excited thinking about how the viewer may be impacted by it.
4. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Don’t stop. Don’t stop learning, don’t stop exploring, don’t stop seeking knowledge, don’t stop yearning for more, don’t stop connecting. Especially when you find something that you love and are passionate about. And I don’t intend to.
The Golden Chaddar (Scarf) & The Crystal Jhoola (Cradle)
5. What role does the artist have in society?
Art can be a powerful way to bring different communities together. Creativity is not limited by language and so it’s a beautiful tool to share different cultures. It can bring unity.
When the Sea Split (Miracle of Moses)
6. Who is the greatest person you ever met?
Mrs. Bilquis Bano Edhi, heads the Edhi Foundation, a charity running the largest ambulance system across Pakistan as well as Edhi Homes for abandoned children, orphans, the elderly and vulnerable women.
Mrs. Edhi personally manages the Jhoola (Cradle) Project, a project that has saved and continues to save the lives of tens of thousands of abandoned children. Over 300 cradles have been placed throughout Pakistan, where abandoned babies maybe placed rather than being killed or left for dead. Each cradle carries the heart-felt message “Do not kill, leave the baby in the cradle”. These babies are cared for in Edhi orphanages where they are loved, educated and as they grow they are taught vocational skills until adulthood. Some of these abandoned children are fortunate enough to find their forever homes through domestic and international adoptions.
I had the honour of personally meeting Mrs. Edhi in her home, a small modest apartment, annexed to the Edhi Orphanage centre in Karachi. I asked her if she knew the identity of the mothers of the abandoned children to which she very proudly replied “Yes I do, ME! I am their mother”.
My artwork “The Golden Chaddar (Scarf) & The Crystal Jhoola (Cradle) is a tribute to Mrs. Edhi. The ‘Chaddar” worn by Mrs. Edhi is a traditional Pakistani head dress, however it is also the name given to a bedsheet. Additionally it symbolizes the protection, shelter, safety and love a mother provides for her children.
The use of crystals for the ‘jhoolas’ depicts their valuableness, as they save the lives of thousands, saving the future generation. These crystals sparkle with the hopes and dreams of a better life, outshining the sorrowful beginnings. They cradle the hope of child-less mothers yearning to be united with the soul-child God has destined for them.
International Women’s Arts Day.