PEOPLE · KUWAIT
Ahmad Alhussaini
A young Kuwaiti artist with a range that resists category. He works across acrylic, oil, sculpting, wood, gypsum, clay, watercolours, and pencil. Eleven local awards. One international win in Ras Al Khaimah for sculpting, against artists from across the world.
ON THE WORK
When I got into studying art, I started winning.
How did you start your career?
When I got into studying art I started participating in exhibitions, and in the first exhibition I participated in, I won.
How long did it take you to get here?
Six years.
What do you enjoy most about what you do?
I enjoy the peace of mind it brings me.
What do you enjoy least?
That it takes all my time, and my anger.
FEAR & MOTIVATION
Emotion is the engine.
What motivates you?
Emotions.
Your biggest fear?
Not doing enough.
Your biggest complaint?
Not too much support from society and communities, and the unfairness of judging in local exhibitions.
ON SUCCESS
Yes, but not enough.
Your proudest accomplishment?
When I won my first exhibition in 2016, and when I won first place in the RAK Dubai exhibition for sculpting, against artists from all over the world.
Are you satisfied with your accomplishments?
Yes, though not enough.
Would you consider yourself successful?
Yes.
If you could start over, what would you change?
Nothing.
CHARACTER
A human, both introvert and extrovert.
A nickname?
Artist.
How would others describe you?
A human.
Introvert or extrovert?
Both at the same time.
Tidy or messy?
Tidy.
DAILY LIFE
Pray. Shower. Do art.
Three things you must do every day?
Pray. Shower. Do art.
What can you not go a day without?
Praying.
If money were not important?
I would still paint and do art.
What was your first job?
Teacher.
Favourite subject in school?
Art.
Languages?
Two.
How many pairs of shoes do you own?
Twelve.
Do you collect anything?
Stones, rings, and sculpting.
FAMILY & HOME
Family and close friends make me laugh.
What makes you laugh the most?
Family and close friends.
Who knows you the best?
My sister.
Favourite family tradition?
Family gatherings.
Favourite family recipe?
Fish.
Favourite childhood memory?
When I started drawing.
FAVOURITES
Moulin Rouge, the Quran, and Ain’t No Sunshine.
Last book you read?
The Quran.
Favourite movie?
Moulin Rouge.
What song best sums you up?
Ain’t No Sunshine When She’s Gone.
Favourite fast-food choice?
Seafood, steaks, burgers, then the rest.
Best gift you have received?
My dad got me my first car. I do not have a worst. All have a meaning to me.
Have you ever had a secret admirer?
Yes.
First celebrity crush?
Monica Bellucci.
LOVE & LIFE
Be good, talk good, do good, and mostly love endlessly.
What is the craziest thing you have done in the name of love?
I was about to get married.
Motto in life?
Be good, talk good, do good, and mostly love endlessly.
Warning label?
Beware, this is a work of art.
Most daring thing you have done?
Bungee jumping.
Glass half full or half empty?
Half empty.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how funny are you?
Nine.
Is there anything you wish would come back into fashion?
Old classic suits and coats.
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Big places.
Who inspires you?
Myself.
Craziest rumour you have heard about yourself?
That I am not easy to talk to or approach.
FOR BOUJEEZ
A young artist worth watching, in a Gulf scene still learning to look closely.
What makes Ahmad Alhussaini interesting to Boujeez is not the medal count, impressive as it is. It is the clarity of the position. He works in many materials but answers from a single place. He paints, sculpts, and prays, and lists them as the three things he must do every day. In a region where contemporary art is finally being given the institutional weight it deserves, Ahmad represents a generation that has been making the work all along, waiting for the rest of us to catch up.