Art and technique
Al-Qatt Al-Asiri is a traditional decorative art of Asir, painting geometric and plant motifs in primary colours directly onto the walls of reception rooms and halls. [1]
Women of the region have long practised it; a painter is called a qattatah, and Fatimah bint Ali Abu Qahhas is among its pioneers. Its motifs include al-banat, al-aryash, al-maharib, al-amshat, the palm and the net. [1]
Meaning and present day
The name comes from qatt, cutting across, referring to the band painted through the middle of the wall. The precision and colours of the work once signalled a family's wealth. [1]
It was added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in 1439 AH/2017 CE, and houses in villages such as Al-Muftaha and Rijal have become open galleries of it. [1]