Oman das andere Arabien
Georg Popp, Juma Al Maskari
German, Arabic
hardbound, photos
155 p., 140 Illustrations
31 x 22,5 cm; 1st Ed., 1995, Augsburg
Juma Al Maskari, born in 1960 in Zanzibar, and Georg Popp met in the early 1980s in a student dormitory in Munich. For both this was the beginning of a long-standing and fruitful cooperation for them: first here in Germany, and after the Sultanate of Oman\'s borders were opened to foreigners in 1990, increasingly also in Oman. The photographic and sculptural works have primarily an aesthetic standard. That they are also documents of our changing times, does not lessen their artistic value.
\'If Juma Al Maskari finds an old door with ornaments, particularly one severely skewed in one of the abandoned mud houses somewhere in the mountains, he must examine it, touch it, and photograph it. It may be that the 35-year-old scientist only started to appreciate his Omani roots while studying in Germany, because he had to describe it so many times. His German friend from the dorm, his contemporary, Georg Popp, was convinced of the simple beauties of Oman and became most enthusiastic, To travel with these two through Oman is a pleasure, not only because they are connoisseurs of the country, but also because of their enthusiasm in sharing the riches of this unpretentious, publicity-shy Arab state.
The fruit of this enthusiasm is an oblong illustrated book that introduces the country on the eastern edge of the Arabian peninsula for the first time in German and Arabic. The photos show the everyday life of fishermen, shipbuilders and traders, traditional Omani architecture and the modern continuation of the artistic mastery of the craftsmen, with panoramic views over the rugged landscape of high mountains and the sea.
The volume is a nice souvenir for tourists, and also a valuable reference work for all those concerned with Arab countries \'. George Walsh, Sächsische Zeitung
