How one OAT traveler and a local artist connected over a mutual passion for artwork
By Mamdouh Haloui, Trip Leader, Tunisia
During one of my recent Tunisia: From the Mediterranean to the Sahara adventures, I learned that one of my travelers, Thomas Richey—a 2-time traveler from Houston, Texas—was an avid art-lover. From the very first day of our trip, he showed this deep passion when he brought a painting he had fallen in love with from the Medina of Tunis. He said he knew that he would never find anything like it anywhere else.
When our group reached the city of Tataouine, I found out (by coincidence) that the maintenance manager of the hotel where we were staying, Saad, was an artist. He was also a native of a Berber village in the south of Tunisia, called Chenini.
Saad, a local Tunisian artist, displays some of his artwork.
Based on my few interactions with Tom, I knew he had the eye of an artist, so I introduced Tom and Saad. One evening, I received a phone call from Saad, asking if I would mind coming to his room to help him translate. Tom was in Saad’s room, and they couldn’t understand each other when trying to discuss payment for one of Saad’s paintings. I had no doubt that these gentlemen understood each other as creative spirits, but they were stuck when it came to the discussion of money—which is just proof that you can’t put a price on art.
Tom and his partner, Sheila Decker, enjoy one of the local modes of Tunisian transportation.
I walked into Saad’s room and couldn’t believe what I saw: The room was filled with paintings—and I could hardly see the bed or any of the other furniture. As soon as I entered, Tom and Saad began asking questions frantically—so I did my best to translate and try to understand everything that was going on. Tom first selected three paintings he was interested in, and then five—and then eight! I was simply lost, as every five minutes, numbers went up and down. It was incredible—and the only way to stay on track was to enjoy a drink of whisky, which was kindly offered by Saad.
One of the paintings Tom purchased from his new friend, Saad, in Tunisia.
At the end of this rather long evening, Tom walked out of Saad’s room with 24 beautiful masterpieces that he was very happy with, and a special book with some of Saad’s artwork throughout the years. Saad looked like an artist whose work was finally acknowledged—and he reminded me of a child who had just received a gift on the feast day at the end of the month of Ramadan. What a wonderful evening that I will never forget!
Tom promised that he would try to plan a trip for Saad to visit the United States for an exhibition of his artwork. Saad is very excited for this potential trip. I hope that his dream will come true one day, and when it finally happens, all of the credit will go to Tom—who, thanks to the wonderful opportunities provided by OAT, was able to connect with a local Tunisian artist and find common ground. This is one of the great benefits of travel: Creating serendipitous moments that enable such meetings to occur.
Discover the local crafts and handiwork of Tunisian artists on our Tunisia: From the Mediterranean to the Sahara adventure.