Emirati artist Najat Makki on her artistic process, and how AI could destroy art

Speaking of the artistic process, she said that first, artists tend to decide what they want to depict and how. Once the subject and style are settled, they consider things like colour and composition; how they want to balance and arrange every element.

All of this together ultimately shapes the artwork, how it looks and feels, and whether it's abstract, impressionistic or something else. Often, the result is a distinctive piece of art that the artist feels worthy to show to the public.

Nature, women and the environment

For Makki, her surroundings have always played a large part in her creativity.

"The environment, in general, impacts a creator, whether they're an artist, photographer, poet, or otherwise. I drew inspiration from many things in my environment," she said.

"As a child, I heard interesting stories from women in our house who met with my mother. Perhaps, back then, as an artist and as a child, I had a great imagination and a tendency to be curious," she added.

As she grew, so did her imagination. She began to explore and read about mythology across the ages.

"I found that each society had its own stories and legends. In some exhibitions, I tried to embody some of the environmental symbols found in the mythology of our Arab and Gulf regions through tales, symbols, and ways of life," she said.

In addition to mythology, women have had a significant presence in Makki's work.

"In my works, women appear in various forms that showcase them as independent beings, yet united in society with men," she said.

"They participate in development through education, and through their status in society; they are valued as mothers or grandmothers, embracing their grandchildren. They also appear as loving women, standing with their husbands and friends," she added.

Makki also uses elements from nature to symbolise women, including the the sea, "with all its beauty and depth, to express women's patience and generousity," and towering palm trees, "as they are part of the Emirati and Arab heritage, so I used them as a symbol of a woman standing strong against storms and possessing resilience."

Circle of life

Other symbols recur in Makki's work, such as the circle. This was inspired by her study of coins, as well as by certain philosophers. This particular element was "remarkably present" in her first exhibition.

"It reflected some readings in the thoughts of many philosophers such as Ibn Sina and others. Some of them see the circle as the soul, an expression of death and life – or the entire world. It may signify the beginning of existence and serve as a starting point for any endeavour undertaken by humans," she said.

The deeper Makki delved into studying coins, the more she understood the significance and varied meanings of the circle. She began to see the shape in a new light.

"A different philosophy became more evident in my artworks, such as metal coins and their principles, symbols, and artistic elements, including the crescent, the stars, or the sun. In certain Eastern or Western societies, many of these symbols appear; they are associated with the planets or stars," she said.

"These symbols sometimes reflect customs and beliefs. In ancient times, during the reign of the Mughal kings, for example, all signs of the zodiac appeared on coins, because they were associated with specific days that influenced the environment or the kings through astrology or other means," she said.

Calm after the storm

Makki reflected on her relationship with a blank canvas – a stretch of white waiting between four corners; she compared the entire process to a birth of sorts.

"At first, there is a mental and emotional struggle," she said. "The artist lives in anxiety and wanders in all directions, eventually finding a sense of calm after deciding on the colours to use. Then, they start to add elements gradually, refining those elements with precision and care, because any imbalance in one element affects all others."

After this process concludes, many artists would choose to name their painting. But for Makki, she prefers to leave her artwork untitled.

"I leave them to the viewer. I place the elements and leave them to their interpretation. When I do use a title, it's because it is a condition of a specific competition," she said.

In 2013, poet and filmmaker Nujoom Alghanem documented Makki's artistic journey in a documentary titled "Red, Blue, Yellow," which screened at the 36th Cairo International Film Festival. Though it shines a light into Makki's process, there's much more to be discovered about the artist.

"The film covers a part of my career because it is impossible to capture all of my artistic experiences," said Makki. "It focuses on some of the habits that I have throughout the day while painting and working."

Technology offers advantages but AI can destroy art

When comparing the present state of art to its past, Makki sees a constant renewal and a "radical" difference.

There are countless new tools at an artist's disposal today, which she views these as both promising developments and a potential threat to the arts.

"A lot has changed. Nowadays, there are several technologies that an artist can use to help create their artwork faster," she said.

For example, if she wants to borrow from her existing paintings, she can do so without losing colour fidelity. There are also many techniques and raw materials to choose from, which can makesit difficult for an artist to decide what would work best for their art.

"The present is radically different from the past. In the past, we used to resort to shadow and light to create an illusion of depth, but today there are materials that create this impression, or technical programs that help me give a painting a concrete form," she said. 

"Working methods have changed and now have a great impact on the artist, their time and their product," she added.

Despite her enthusiasm for new technology, Makki finds one controversial development a bit puzzling – artificial intelligence. AI has come under fire recently, due to the fact that it uses existing artwork to imitate and automate art.

"It's confusing because it can eliminate the artist's role. Once a command is given by someone who is unfamiliar with art, like 'draw me a painting by Picasso using these colours,' an image appears that looks like a copy of Picasso's work," she said.

"AI can destroy art, and with AI, we can see a million different versions of a single painting. Even before the advent of artificial intelligence, we were witnessing the forgery of artworks through the creation and distribution of copies of artists' works. Many artists encountered this problem, as some of their printings were printed and sold," she said.

"I see that AI has a good side and a bad side, and I hope that we choose the side that leads us to elevate art, and reach higher levels of artistry."