Realizing their imaginative skills, ten Saudi girls in Jeddah have made the best use of their artistic talent and have plunged into the world of “airbrush art.” The girls, fresh graduates from a fine arts college, didn't wait for employment calls and decided to exploit their creative minds to earn a decent living. Saudi women are now excelling in all the fields and in conformity with this trend, this group has made use of airbrush art in decorating cars. They said airbrush art can be created on almost any surface - T-shirts, leather, motorcycle helmet, fingernails and skin noting that airbrush art is created using paint and compressor which “blows” the paint onto the surface. “Because of the use of air, the paint can be extremely thin and transparent, or it can be very thick and solid in color. If you have ever seen a motorcycle with a custom paintjob on the gas tank, you have seen an example of airbrush art,” they claimed. The girls expressed their readiness to organize a workshop to train girls with artistic talents in airbrush arts. They believe the art can be useful in drawing on old solid surfaces such as ceramics and walls. Khloud Al-Sharif, the first girl trained in airbrush art, said: “The idea developed in my mind due to the high demand by boys and girls to add an artistic touch to their cars and laptops by drawing certain shapes on their surfaces. It has often been noted that some youth travel all the way to neighboring countries to decorate their cars with these paintings because this art does not exist in the Kingdom. They shell out a large amount of money in the process.” Khloud said this has encouraged her to work on this idea in the Kingdom. She says she is charging much less than some art agencies outside the Kingdom. She held a workshop some time ago in which she trained scores of girls. “Other than the surface that you wish to create your brush art on, you will need some basic tools like metal tools with heads that can control the thickness of the stream,” she elaborated. “On some models, the head can be swapped so that the artist can use the same airbrush for fine, medium, or thick surfaces. The bottom of the brush is a nub that allows for the attachment of the paint that is being used,” she said. Khloud entered into a partnership with nine other girls mainly involved in decorating cars. The girls lure their customers through their websites and use toy cars as a model for drawing the shapes the customers want to see on their cars. Khloud urged officials in the fine arts college to introduce and teach this art. “This will help girls to earn their living,” she said. - Al
