Two students and one alumna from the Department of Painting + Printmaking (PAPR) at Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar (VCUarts Qatar) recently ‘helped’ capture the corporate culture and vision of Gulf Warehousing Company (GWC) through a series of bespoke artwork for their new regional centre at Ras Bufontas Free Zone.

PAPR students Ece Yigit and Alice Aslem and PAPR alumna Salma Awad created 29 paintings for various sections of the GWC office including the main reception lobby, meeting rooms and various locations within the building.

Corporate paintings

Yigit, due to her experience in collaborating with local fit-out companies for customised artwork, was initially approached by 1000 Walls, an interior design company tasked with fitting out the interiors of the new GWC Regional Center, to create artworks for their client.

Over a series of meetings with the design company, and then with the marketing and communications team and leadership of GWC, Yigit familiarised herself with the creative proposal and conceptually developed the paintings over eight weeks.

The brief that GWC provided was quite specific, explains Yigit.

The artwork had to be in the form of paintings. Most of these paintings had to be abstract, complementing the interior decor and incorporating GWC’s corporate culture and vision.

Productivity and creativity

Yigit said that the company also wanted a few paintings in a more realistic style, meant to highlight their position as a regional leader in logistics and as the official logistics provider of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. It was a process which, thanks to VCUarts Qatar, she is familiar with.

GWC Marketing and Communication Director Jawaher Al Khuzaei said they strive to create an environment of productivity and creativity throughout their locations and operations.

To this end, we support local talent and youth development, whenever possible. This is a part of our vision for fostering the drive and tenacity to innovate and deliver.

Al Khuzaei said that for this specific project, they wanted to incorporate the local and national character while reflecting the intent and capabilities of the new GWC Regional Center at Ras Bufontas Free Zone.

Following the initial meetings, Yigit reached out to Awad and Aslem. The trio created the frame-mounted canvases meant for each artwork from scratch – including procuring the best canvas material available locally and then manipulating them onto purpose-built wooden frames.

29 Paintings, tight deadline

For Awad, whose artistic style inclines towards the abstract, the thrill is in working with a team to capitalise on art’s range of functional attributes and benefits.

In university, we tend to focus on individual projects. Hence, to be able to work with a team, and that too, for the official logistics provider for the upcoming World Cup, was a special experience. In fact, when the project was over, we realised that – inadvertently – the three of us had worked on each of the 29 paintings!

If completing 29 paintings under a tight deadline is a challenge for most – following the eight weeks spent in conceptualisation, the execution process itself was wrapped up in 20 days – it was more so for Aslem and Yigit, who, as full-time students, had to balance their course work with the project. The experience, according to Aslem, gave her a taste of what it’s like to build a career in a creative profession.

Every single decision – and day – was a lesson in creating for a purpose, she says. For instance, a couple of paintings had to counter the effect of the flooring in certain rooms, whereas the paintings meant for the offices of the senior leadership had to reflect the position of the room’s occupant.

On a broader level – and thanks to the support of our Professor Michael Perrone who guided us throughout the process – we were introduced to the commercial aspects of creative processes, such as drawing up proposals and quotations, discussing budgets, overseeing logistics including the packaging and transporting of finished pieces, and how to build a two-way communication channel between us and a corporate client.

As full-time students, it was quite a hill to climb, but the view from the top – when they saw their work installed in the main lobby, and in different offices within the building – made it worthwhile.

For more information about VCUarts Qatar, visit qatar.vcu.edu. 

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