Inside the notorious Abu Salim jail

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14755667

Colonel Gaddafi has called for Libya to be “engulfed in flames” in an audio message carried by a loyalist TV channel.

In Tripoli, human rights workers are trying to salvage records from inside Libya’s most notorious prison, Abu Salim.

Over the course of several decades, thousands of Libyans are said to have been jailed and tortured in the prison by members of the Gaddafi regime.

Jeremy Bowen reports from Tripoli.

la storia siamo noi

(l’arte di Mohammad Bin Lamin, testimone della storia drammatica del suo popolo e capace di trasformare gli strumenti della guerra in immagini di pace. Un artista che ha sempre promosso la pace, la convivenza e il rispetto.) Silvia Casilli.

(the art of Mohammad Bin Lamin, witness the dramatic story of his people and capable of transforming the tools of war in peace images. An artist who has always promoted peace, co-existence and respect.)

From: Rai Educational – ITALY
http://www.lastoriasiamonoi.rai.it/
Mohammad Bin Lamin

I fantasmi della nuova Libia
La Libia festeggia l’anniversario dell’inizio della Rivoluzione che ha sconfitto Gheddafi. Il Paese ha conquistato la libertà, ma non ancora la democrazia. Un viaggio attraverso i fantasmi di questa difficile fase di transizione.

View The Program:
http://www.lastoriasiamonoi.rai.it/pop/schedaVideo640480.aspx?id=880

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The Power of Mohammad Bin Lamin’s Art and The Libyan Revolution

By Hego Goevert

Anyone who says you can’t see a thought simply doesn’t know art (Wynetka Ann Reynolds) 

Can art be subversive? Oh, yes, it can! And there is no better evidence for this statement than the art of Mohammad Bin Lamin.Let me come right to the point:

Mohammad Bin Lamin’s art is unique. It cannot be categorized. And, of course, it eludes the control of any authority. His art clearly contributed to the outbreak of the Libyan revolution. He is one of those artists, writers, intellectuals who prepared the ground.

If you are able to ‘read’ paintings, you simply have to have a look at his 2007 series ‘Figures’ which depicts the pre-revolutionary atmosphere in Libya. Figures – painted on a unique blue background – in yellow, red, white, brown, wildly moving, dancing, and whirling around like some sort of mystical dervishes. The series expresses the irrepressible passion, the individual desire for freedom. Later, in his New Media series, Bin Lamin takes a closer look at the people’s faces and you can see grim, wrath. He also started to paint groups of people as if there would be a secret gathering going on…

When I got the news of his detention I immediately implemented various actions – together with my fellow artists of the internationally acclaimed MIRCA ART GROUP. We implemented actions as we had done before in aid of the release of Burma’s (Myanmar’s) Aung San Suu Kyi and China’s Ai Weiwei. Now one of our fellow members, Mohammad Bin Lamin, had been arrested and for unbearable 6 months we did not know if he was still alive.We felt more than a great relief and joy when we got the news that our friend had been freed from the detention in the infamous Abu- Salim-prison. This was a kind of victory for all of us!

Of course, Mohammad Bin Lamin’s art has changed since the end of the revolution. I think, it’s quite typical for him, that he started doing a captivating series called ‘Sculptures of War’, showing impressive sculptures made of bullet casings, in which he comforts and encourages the amputees of the revolution (“Life can be joyful and rewarding again!”). Only after doing this series he started to overcome his own trauma by doing the amazing ‘Torture of Tintalos’ series.

I do not think that anyone of us can imagine what Mohammad Bin Lamin has gone through during his detention – knowing that his wife was pregnant. I was so touched when she finally gave birth to
two lovely girls, his daughters Takbeer & Tahleel. May they reap in their lives what their father and the other heroes of the revolution sowed!.

I am so proud of being called Mohammad’s FRIEND. It is an honour to be friend with someone who stood up for the freedom of the individual, for the freedom of speech and art, for the dignity of man and for social justice. Though deeply rooted in the great culture of Libya, Mohammad Bin Lamin is a ‘global citizen’. I
cannot think of any better cultural ambassador for Libya!.

————————————————————————————————————————————

* Some of the places where Hego’s Artwork was displayed:

Cologne (Germany, Kalshof, “Cologne meets New York” Group Exhibition) 2011; New York
(USA, Skylight Gallery NYC, “Gestalt- German artists in Conversation” Group Exhibition)
2011; Cape Town (South Africa, Belinda Anvil- The Rainbow Experience Gallery- “Freedom and Art”-
Project/Travelling Exhibition) 2010 and the list goes on…

la storia siamo noi [2]
From: Rai Educational – ITALY
http://www.lastoriasiamonoi.rai.it/

I fantasmi della nuova Libia La Libia festeggia l’anniversario dell’inizio della Rivoluzione che ha sconfitto Gheddafi. Il Paese ha conquistato la libertà, ma non ancora la democrazia. Un viaggio attraverso i fantasmi di questa difficile fase di transizione. From: Rai Educational – ITALY

http://www.lastoriasiamonoi.rai.it/pop/schedaVideo640480.aspx?id=880

la storia siamo noi [1]
From: Rai Educational – ITALY
http://www.lastoriasiamonoi.rai.it/

I fantasmi della nuova Libia La Libia festeggia l’anniversario dell’inizio della Rivoluzione che ha sconfitto Gheddafi. Il Paese ha conquistato la libertà, ma non ancora la democrazia. Un viaggio attraverso i fantasmi di questa difficile fase di transizione. From: Rai Educational – ITALY

http://www.lastoriasiamonoi.rai.it/pop/schedaVideo640480.aspx?id=880

la storia siamo noi From: Rai Educational – ITALY

Works & Life

Mohammad Bin Lamin – Works & Life

By Solara Sabah

“The aim of every artist is to arrest motion, which is life, by artificial means and hold it fixed so that a hundred years later, when a stranger looks at it, it moves again since it is life.” – Faulkner

Mohammad Bin Lamin’s Art is breathtaking and truly remarkable work.

Binlamin focuses on his ideas and pour it on a wide variety of mediums.

Mohammad Bin Lamin, is a Libyan born artist and lives in Misurata. He is a self- taught, self-representing artist and sculptor. Internally motivated, and guided by his own spirituality. He uses mix media to produce his art which enables him to vary his styles and creations.

His work is powerful, and conveys his emotions and can be, at times, both poetic or visual poetry and abstract art, simultaneously. “The Yellow being series”,” Being Who is Enclose in White series”, “Abstract of new Space”, “Angelical Dance Circle series”, are few examples of Binlmain’s work, which are very inspiring and illustrate his techniques and creativity.

Experience of Abu Salim Prison

“Art does not exist only to entertain, but also to challenge one to think, to provoke, even to disturb, in a constant search for truth”.

During the Libyan Revolution, Binlamin was detained and sent to Abu Salim prison while he was there he filled the prison’s wall with his paintings using the foil plates to draw. Abu Salim drawings are truly unique works and reveal his creative side to share his visions about freedom as he imagined it for himself and for all Libyans.

It takes creativity to work with unusual mediums and thats what Bin lamin did, he used the bullet’s shells, empty bullets, and metallic wires which were left over after the war and build out of it a very interesting and amazing sculptures to symbolized the “Revolution” he titled them ‘ Sculptures of War”. “Sculptures of Libyan Revolution” and Sculptures to Honor the War’s Amputees.

Accomplishments:

1. Mohammad Bin Lamin discovered a new and unknown technical task which is regarded as substantial addition in the world of techniques and media

2. . Mohammad Bin Lamin invented new Media with new techniques on the painting based on special materials using photographic burned – paper. It is inexpensive method and has important results and quick implementation, durable and can be washed with water.

The Power of Mohammad Bin Lamin’s Art and The Libyan Revolution

The Power of Mohammad Bin Lamin’s Art and The Libyan

Revolution

By Hego Goevert

(Young Chronicle- Issue: 12, Volume: 01,

April 2012)

 

“Anyone who says you can’t see a thought simply doesn’t know art”

(Wynetka Ann Reynolds)

Can art be subversive? Oh, yes, it can! And there is no better

evidence for this statement than the art of Mohammad Bin Lamin.

Let me come right to the point:

Mohammad Bin Lamin’s art is unique. It cannot be categorized.

And, of course, it eludes the control of any authority. His art

clearly contributed to the outbreak of the Libyan revolution. He is

one of those artists, writers, intellectuals who prepared the ground.

If you are able to ‘read’ paintings, you simply have to have a look at

his 2007 series ‘Figures’ which depicts the pre-revolutionary

atmosphere in Libya. Figures – painted on a unique blue

background – in yellow, red, white, brown, wildly moving, dancing,

and whirling around like some sort of mystical dervishes. The

series expresses the irrepressible passion, the individual desire for

freedom. Later, in his New Media series, Bin Lamin takes a closer

look at the people’s faces and you can see grim, wrath. He also

started to paint groups of people as if there would be a secret

gathering going on…

 

 

When I got the news of his detention I immediately implemented

various actions – together with my fellow artists of the

internationally acclaimed MIRCA ART GROUP. We implemented

actions as we had done before in aid of the release of Burma’s

(Myanmar’s) Aung San Suu Kyi and China’s Ai Weiwei. Now one of

our fellow members, Mohammad Bin Lamin, had been arrested

and for unbearable 6 months we did not know if he was still alive.

We felt more than a great relief and joy when we got the news that

our friend had been freed from the detention in the infamous Abu-

Salim-prison. This was a kind of victory for all of us!

Of course, Mohammad Bin Lamin’s art has changed since the end

of the revolution. I think, it’s quite typical for him, that he started

doing a captivating series called ‘Sculptures of War’, showing

impressive sculptures made of bullet casings, in which he comforts

and encourages the amputees of the revolution (“Life can be joyful

and rewarding again!”). Only after doing this series he started to

overcome his own trauma by doing the amazing ‘Torture of

Tintalos’ series.

 

 

I do not think that anyone of us can imagine what Mohammad Bin

Lamin has gone through during his detention – knowing that his

wife was pregnant. I was so touched when she finally gave birth to

two lovely girls, his daughters Takbeer & Tahleel. May they reap in

their lives what their father and the other heroes of the revolution

sowed!

I am so proud of being called Mohammad’s FRIEND. It is an

honour to be friend with someone who stood up for the freedom of

the individual, for the freedom of speech and art, for the dignity of

man and for social justice. Though deeply rooted in the great

culture of Libya, Mohammad Bin Lamin is a ‘global citizen’. I

cannot think of any better cultural ambassador for Libya!