Michael Arnold’s first solo show depicts UAE buildings through a blend of architecture and art

Thanks to what now seems like serendipitous timing, Michael Arnold progressed through a successful, 40-year career as an architect without ever having to become computer literate.

When he began as an office boy in his teens, his job was to pour ammonia into the printers. As he worked his way up through the ranks, he drew every design by hand and when computer programs were devised to make the sketching and rendering process easier, Arnold had already risen to managerial level.

This meant that when he retired in his 60s, his architectural-sketching skills were finely honed – and set to launch him into a second career as an artist.

However, that is not giving him the full credit he is due, because he also needed the sensibilities of an artist to produce the pieces in his first solo show – From the Art of Architecture to the Architecture of Art – which is running at Showcase Gallery.

Using the technique of monoprinting, Arnold has taken recognisable buildings from Dubai and Abu Dhabi and created abstracted renderings, which take on their own life and form because of his unusual printing technique.

Arnold begins with a sheet of tinfoil, which he covers in black paint and then lays a sheet of paper on the top. Using a pencil, he sketches on the paper and then, with a series of tools that include a spoon, a comb, a roller and his own thumb, he applies pressure to the paper and, when he is ready, peels it off to create a unique print.

Original article by Anna Seaman

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Michael Arnold’s first solo show depicts UAE buildings through a blend of architecture and art