The Aesthetics of Asiri Wall Art (Al-Qat) as An Entry Point to Enrich the Silk-Screen Printed Painting to Preserve Saudi Heritage

Abstract

The Asir region in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has a rich heritage that has been greatly influenced by the nature of the charming place. Asir is distinguished by the art of the “Asiri cat,” which is lines, engravings, and aesthetic formations drawn by women who specialize in this field and have preserved this art from women who preceded them. Asiri inscription is distinguished from other inscriptions by the use of colors. Bright natural colors such as blue, orange, green, white and black, as the Asir region represents an important heritage and tourist destination within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It played a pivotal role in enriching the cultural and creative stock not only of the Saudi national, but also of the Arabian Gulf region. This prompted the researcher to delve into the analysis of the creative and artistic aspects of Asiri art murals and concluded by reviewing the visions of the possibility of formulating Asiri artistic creative units into contemporary artistic designs for the purpose of exploiting them in devising models for printed artworks that are largely related to the structure of form and content of Asiri cat art. In its aesthetic philosophy, it relies on the heritage and civilizational references associated with the place and in the artist’s own view of reviving Saudi heritage. The research aims to take advantage of the geometric and floral decorative elements in the Al-Qatt Al-Asiri murals as a source for enriching contemporary printed painting characterized by authenticity and contemporaneity, and to preserve popular decorations by reformulating them in a way that is in line with the times, and preserves their most prominent features, thereby enhancing belonging and preserving the heritage and values ​​of society from extinction. Researching the descriptive analytical method in identifying the origins and characteristics of the Asiri wall art (the cat), analyzing its vocabulary, reformulating it and drawing inspiration from it to enrich the printed painting, in addition to the applied study through the use of different techniques and materials.The results of the study concluded that there are various aesthetic values ​​in the Asiri cat murals that can be used to create works printed using silk screen technology and various printing techniques, which achieves the preservation of the Asiri heritage in the southern region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The study recommended the need to pay attention to studying heritage and the arts it contains due to its It is of great importance as it stimulates the appreciation of traditional art and preserves it.