ZİHUR EL MEŞRİQÎ

Tunisia- Tunisian painter Najat Bamri began to paint the walls of her house using her mouth when she was four years old. She had spinal muscular atrophy after her birth and she has been unable to use her hands since then but she knows how to challenge against all obstacles. Her paintings have been exhibited in many countries of the Middle East and she was awarded the Medal of Honor. Let’s learn her story from herself.

“I first held a brush when I was four years old girl. One day, I painted the walls of our house using my lips. Since then, I have a big dream. I loved the colors. Painting is a dream for me. A dream in which I see myself.”

“A weapon that allows me to prove myself…”

Najat Bamri told us her parents never treat their children differently.

“You cannot succeed without being tired and obstacles. My parents have treated me as they treated my siblings since my childhood. They never treat me differently. I have never felt a difference between me and my siblings. Surely, I am different. But I manage to overcome all obstacles that I have faced outside the house like all women with a disability living in an oppressive patriarchal society. I can hold a brush, mix colors with my mouth. Painting has become a weapon that allows me to prove myself.”

Her family also believes in her dream

Najat Bamri has always believed in her dream, the most important thing is that her family has always believed in her.

“My family has always helped and supported me and they have believed in my skills. My family has believed in my dream as I have believed. The only thing that I need when I start to paint is my materials. If they are close to me, I have no problems. When I try to paint alone at home, sometimes I drop my materials so I paint again. Surely, I sometimes mess up the house. Living conditions are very difficult for people with disabilities in my country. Sometimes, I think of leaving this country but I give up saying, ‘I can face whatever Tunisian women face.’”

There are no words such as poor, weak, impossible, difficult in her life!

Najat told us that there are no words such as poor, weak, impossible, and difficult in her life and paintings. “I think I should overcome all difficulties I have faced. I try to paint a positive world. I don’t like the pity looks. I am a strong woman and never need pity. Painting is life for me. It is the source of my existence, thought and happiness. When I was a child, I painted the things in my fantasy world. It becomes a source of expressing my ambitions and anxieties when I grew up. I try to reflect in my paintings that disability is neither an obstacle nor a defect.”

She doesn’t like selling her paintings

Najat thinks her paintings are like her children, “My paintings are like my children. They have my story. I had to sell some of my paintings but I felt very sad to sell them,” said Najat, who travels to many countries such as Algeria, Egypt and Turkey in the Middle East. I also went to France for an exhibition.  She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in 2018 by Creators Foundation the Arabs in Egypt. She was also awarded the Medal of Honor by the Presidency of Tunisia on the occasion of International Women’s Day on March 8, 2019.

Najat’s message to women all around the world

“First prove yourself to yourself, because a successful woman first should know herself and how to break her limits. Love yourself, do what you want to do, work hard and be patient. If you believe, you can succeed.”