Issue - Y-oman.com

Vive Le OmanWords Karima Farid | Photography Jerzy WierzbickiThe golden sands, the azure sea, the cobalt skies and the earthy brown jebels, This book will be the new edition of a pictorial work entitledthe beauty of Oman is evident all around and it will come as no surprise that it “Regards Oman” to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of thehas become a source of inspiration for many an artist. As an Omani, I am prone HM Sultan Qaboos’ ascencion to power; an artistic pieceto forget about the many striking scenes of beauty all around me, but I know I with patriotic undertones. Michel recalls that the first pictuream not the only one to take this country’s beauty for granted. Even such amazing that made him say “wow” was a photograph that he tookscenery as we enjoy here in Oman becomes just ‘part of the background’ for those during his military service back in 1958 in the desert, so itof us who witness it on a daily basis. For one lovely French couple who have been is little wonder that he enjoys capturing the Omani desertvisiting Oman for the past 17 years, perhaps they could say that they are more today in all its simple, rustic glory. He explains that thein tune with the beauty of Oman than the average citizen or resident. Not only freedom and landscapes that the desert offers means it isthis, but their shared artistic talents have enabled them to capture, interpret and like a dream to him both day and night of his expeditionsexpress this beauty through the medium of art, with breathtaking results. into these sandy planes.Michele began working as a journalist almost 45 years ago, writing articles on Since 1967, Michèle and Michel Hétier have been exploringtourism for an array of magazines. The writer has delved into the subjects of the world together and expressing these shared experiences,economy and history too, giving her a grasp of the workings of the countries she he through his lens and she by the pen. This culminated in thehas visited, so not only can she please her aesthetic senses but also explain the pair deciding to start their own publishing company twentyworkings of these countries. When she met Michel she knew she had not only years ago named Regards, a name which works perfectly infound her soul mate, but also a working partner, and since then they have been both English and French. Their first visit to the region wasinseparable, he as a photographer and she as a writer.in fact to the UAE, but their visit to the Sultanate ensuredthat it would be Oman that would enjoy the bulk of theirMichel’s foray into photography began a very long time ago. He expresses, “My holiday time. With such experience of Oman, coming backwife and I, we like discovering the Middle East together and now for the past 17 to the Sultanate is just like going home for them. They bothyears we have been coming to Oman for a month, twice a year. Our current project articulate, “People here seem oblivious to how beautiful theiris to work on a book for His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, and it will contain pictures of own country is. The landscapes are just perfect and whenwhat we have seen throughout our visits. This will happen in November 2010.” we land here, we feel right at home. We stay with friendsthat we came to know throughout the years.”So far, they have produced several books about Oman, acouple of general books about the country and separateworks covering Dhofar, Sharqiyah and Batinah, which areavailable at the Family Book Shop. They have begun toexplore a new region with their latest book which will becompleted by the end of the year and launched in 2011 -a book that tells us all about Musandam. This tribute tothe regions of the nation is a cultural exchange for them,and they seem to have also seen many changes in Omanthroughout their years of visits. Michel says that it is wellbalanced, and that the people of this country are happy withthe pace at which they are passing through this transitionalperiod. Michele is impressed by the respect the citizens hereshow His Majesty Sultan Qaboos. She says, “I have seenlocals prepare rose petals for celebration times, they do it inthe most unique ways and it is admirable. A touch of cultureis seen everywhere, just like traditional architecture. Alsothe role of a woman has been growing rapidly. I just lovethis place.”Apart from being prestigious photographers and passionatewriters on an individual level, they decided that they wantedto unify these talents to create something truly unique.Michel explains that he has around 350 model horses, whichvary from the small ivory casts that his wife gave to him toa colossal 50kg wooden horse. He is planning to prepare abook about horses and different forms of art from aroundthe world. Michele is also planning to write a novel one day,something that will reflect a woman or perhaps the historyof her own family. But of course she needs time and quietto do this - perhaps an extended stay in Oman could provideher with the tranquillity she needs?In the meantime, Michel will showcase his creative prowess in a joint exhibitionentitled “Colours of Oman” at Bait al-Baranda with the talented artist AgnesClouet. Agnes is a soft-spoken artist, but with a raging, deeper passion that youcan only experience through viewing her paintings. Born and raised in France, shegrew up to learn anything and everything about art and has been painting nonstopsince she was a little girl. Once she was married Agnes began to explorethe world, but wherever she went she took up painting with a passionate furore,learning through art courses, which have kept her on top of her game ever since.She never thought that the dynamics of abstract art was something that she couldpersonally achieve. Although she has always enjoyed painting portraits and wasused to classical formations, she soon realized that abstract art was the artisticform that expressed her best.It was this art form which coupled up so nicely with Michel’s photography. WithAgnes, painting is simply an emotion, and a reflection of what she is feeling orviewing at any particular moment. Agnes never goes into art with a clearly thoughtout plan, on the contrary, it can sometimes take her two hours to finish a painting,and at other times it would take her three full months! It really depends on herwhen she has to stop, “I begin with a plain canvas, a few colours and brushes. Bythe end of it I end up using any object that can give me the greatest satisfaction Ineed to finish up the painting- even a toothbrush. I follow my instinct, and whenI am done, I know that I am done.”A delving beauty that can only be tasted with the eyes, her paintings representmany different aspects of her life; many others even represent the beauty andthe colours of Oman. She hopes to come back again as soon as possible, as sheadmits that there is plenty more to discover about Oman. But the photographer,the writer and the painter all have one goal with this particular visit to the country;it is to show us the beauty of Oman through the visuals they have created.26 27