“Ugarit Female Artists” group consolidates the role of women in Syria

Six Syrian female artists and sculptors from different Syrian governorates  united in a group called  “Ugarit Artists” group through which they  seek  to  recall the sanctity and role of women in the renaissance of the Ugaritic civilization before 3000 BC in addition to highlight through their art  the Syrian women’s entities and consolidate their key role in spreading all kinds of art.

Under the auspices of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) , “ Ugarit Artists” ‘s  first forum  was in 2018 at the Museum of the City of Lattakia, the cradle  of Ugarit’s   civilization , then holding several collective exhibitions  the most recent of which was the “Meshwar” exhibition in Damascus city.

“Our group was established with the aim of highlighting the role of the Syrian female artist in Syrian society in the plastic art field .Our work as artists is integrated and harmonious .” Artist Lina Deeb told the E-Syria blog

Artist Deeb depends  on heritage as the source of artistic and cultural originality. Heritage symbols attract her with their  richness of color so the artist was keen on documenting heritage through art because it embodies our cultural identity.

In turn, sculptor  Yousra Muhammad said “My enthusiasm came in line with the enthusiasm of the six artists  of this group . We are proud of achieving distinguished presence and achievements in every event we have organized”.

Artist  Ola Hilal indicated that she  participated in several  collective  exhibitions in Syria  after graduating from Damascus University , the Faculty of Fine Arts  in 2006.

 “ Ugarit Artists” group, according to artist  Hilal, is a platform for Syrian female artists to confirm that Syrian women are able to have a strong presence in all fields.She indicated that her sculptures embody  the human’s illusions and  topics concerning women’s condition.

Ola Hilal indicated that she  participated in several  collective  exhibitions in Syria  after graduating from Damascus University , the Faculty of Fine Arts  in 2006.

“ Ugarit Artists” group, according to artist  Hilal, is a platform for Syrian female artists to confirm that Syrian women are able to have a strong presence in all fields.

She indicated that her sculptures embody the human’s illusions and  topics concerning women’s condition.

A member of the Syrian and Arab Plastic Artists Union, the artist  Batoul Al-Mardini , who joined the group in 2019, stressed “ art has a great role in  the development of societies. It  is the preserver of our heritage, our civilizational  and our cultural identity, especially after the difficult crisis  that our country has subjected to  during the last years of the war.”

For her part , the artist Amal Al-Zayyat said” We managed to organize distinguished events for the children of the Damascus Governorate Club,  the SOS, and the children of “Basma” for cancer and cerebral palsy in addition to  the Syrian “Al-Ikha’a Association”.

She added we organized a special workshop in  “Mashta Al-Helou” where we  revived  the trees there   in our way including  putting  on models and shapes of the wires.

“ Ugarit Artists Group provided us with an important opportunity to exchange expertise within this collective experience” Al-Zayyat concluded.

Rawaa Ghanam