Inspired by graffiti artists and political activist Banksy, Ghada bnt Ali is using art as a form of expression, and she’s getting political.
A graphic design graduate from the Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar, Ghada bnt Ali works for Qatar Museums in acquisitions by day, but by night she becomes ‘geeak’, a political commentator with a touch of art.
Ghada never planned to become a political cartoonist, but the frustration of silently watching what her home country Qatar is going through had to be expressed, according to Doha News.
“Qatar was being bullied, and everything that has happened with the crisis allowed me to use it (drawing) as an outlet,” the 28-year-old said.
Despite being a designer and an art enthusiast for years, she only began drawing political cartoons a few months back.
“I only did this to find a different outlet, I didn’t expect it to explode per se. But the more I did, the more I got interaction and reactions from people. I posted consecutively for about four days, and after that people said they were waiting for a new one.”
Back in June, she shared her first cartoon on her social media accounts, a peace sign shaped as a Q in maroon, the color of Qatar’s national flag.
It was a success, and after publishing a few more cartoons, her artwork was picked up by people all over Qatar and beyond.
One particular graphic even became quite popular in Turkey. It says “the leader” in Arabic calligraphy inspired by the Turkish flag, and is a tribute to Turkey and its leader’s support to Qatar.
“I got lots of messages from Turkish people after that,” Doha News cited.
For the time being, you can find ‘geeak’s’ artwork and political cartoons on her Twitter and Instagram profiles, but she revealed that she has bigger plans.
“I really want to get my work out there in the global arena. You don’t see a lot of people from the Middle East showcasing their point of view like that.”
