Scribbling mission on Tansu's guitar.

Note: Dotting method on Guitar with a permanent marker.

A photo posted by Ula Ahmed (@ula.ahmed) on Jan 1, 2015 at 5:24pm PST

Taming Rannamaari, 

Taming the Beast.

Note: Micron pen on sketchbook. The dotting obsession is slowly creeping up on me :/

This is to all the wonderful strong women I know and more.

Guitar drawing phase two. #LedZepplin

A photo posted by Ula Ahmed (@ula.ahmed) on Dec 12, 2014 at 10:51am PST

Dear Internet (a.k.a. Men, Women, Husbands, Wives, ignorant sexist “writers” and so forth)

Read the full article at  A Definistrat-ing Tree Hugger

Due to the increasingly sexist and ignorant drivel being published by “news outlets” such as “Vaguthu”, it has become impossible for me to sit by and let these poisonous articles pollute the minds of an already patriarchal society.

The most recent of these articles, titled “Why spouses should have daily intercourse”. (A translation as the aforementioned article is in Dhivehi)

Now, I am a liberal woman and would normally celebrate a healthy sexual relationship between married couples. However after reading the article, which I cannot help but compare to toxic sludge, I spent three hours on a bus experiencing a myriad of emotions, from disbelief and indignation to a sense of hopelessness and despair at the state of our society.

The article started off innocently enough with statements such as “Fidelity and caring for each other is essential to the longevity of a marriage” and “Conducting the sexual life in a manner agreeable to both partners is extremely important for a happy marriage”

Then came the proverbial flood of lethal flatulence and excrement.

The writer proceeds to elaborate on five reasons why he believes that couples should have daily intercourse with the aim of nurturing the love they have for each other and in order to attain marital bliss.

The writer postulates that with children come obstacles to intercourse, that women feel unattractive after giving birth and that the majority of a mother’s time is spent tending to the needs of the child, leading to a lack of time for the husband. He states that mothers wind up forced to spend their entire days washing clothes, cooking and cleaning.

His marital advice for this situation is as follows:“Despite all the above that comes with having a child, it is important for every woman to have intercourse with the husband”

…

Should not his advice rather been for the husband?
To help with the housework and looking after the child with the wife so that the wife does not wind up swamped with housework and child rearing all by her lonesome? So that the couple can free up time to enjoy each others company?

His second reason for daily intercourse is that “The husband will act as a man depending on how the wife treats the husband”, “The woman must understand that the husband is a man-” (whatever that means) “-and satisfy his needs” ( I shall try not to regurgitate my dinner at this point, for it was a delicious dinner) “ Women want love and caring from the husband.” “However what the man wants from the wife is for her to satisfy his basic needs such as feeding him on time and her appreciating the work he does to provide for the wife” (I kid you not, that is what he has written)

He then advises women to present themselves to their husbands sometime during the day in a “short dress” which will result in an increase in desire by the husband for her. The writer then states that, satisfying the husband’s sexual needs would lead to a strengthening of the husband’s trust and respect for her.

The above is an insult to both women AND men.

The writer may be a sexist, emotionless twit, however I know of many men including my fiancee who would be extremely insulted to have been described this way.

Read the full article at  A Definistrat-ing Tree Hugger

'Kadın' Akıllı

'Kadın' Akıllı from Ula Ahmed on Vimeo.

A documentary on Women's rights in Turkey by two friends and myself, for our Uni project.

The current version is in Turkish. Hopefully we will be done with the English translation by the end of this year. This is not the full documentary but a shorter version we made for the class. We are hoping to make a longer cut with additional interviews within the next year. 

An A. Ula Ahmed, Sara Durmuş and Hümeyra Uzunbayır project.

Sara Durmuş: Research and interviewing

Hümeyra Uzunbayır: Second Camera, Audio and Editing Assistant.A. Ula Ahmed: Camera, Animation and Editing.

Marmara Üniversitesi, Sinema bolümü, Belgesel Yapım dersi için hazırlayan çalışmanın küçük bir parçası. Bu projenin uzun şekli en kısa zaman da yayınlanacak.

Bir, A. Ula Ahmed, Sara Durmuş ve Hümeyra Uzunbayır Çalışması.

Sara Durmuş: Araştırma ve Raportaj
Hümeyra Uzunbayır: Ayrıntı Çekimler, Ses ve Kurgu Yardımcısı.
A. Ula Ahmed: Kamera, Animasyın ve Kurgu.

masks

"One wears:
a dust mask when working,
a snow mask when robbing a bank,
and the mask of religion when robbing the country."

I saw this in Turkish. It sounded way better in Turkish but applies to nearly all countries.

Sea song

Villingili beach one year ago (give or take a few weeks)

Good times.

Note: Dotting with ratline pen on sketch book.

The travelling star gazer

A sketch of Aadhu and his interesting feet, during a training session of observers by Transparency Maldives for the presidential elections last summer.

Ps. He is a lawyer by day and traveler/ star gazer by night. No seriously. He is a pretty cool dude.

Note: Pen sketch on sketchbook, scanned and colored.

Dear internet (16th Jan 2014)

"Dear internet (a.k.a men, male chauvinists, sexists, horrified relatives, random web surfer and so forth)

I have been wondering how to approach this for a while. In the end, I have decided to rip it off like a quick and possibly painful bandaid. Because there is no such thing as a quick and painless bandaid. Anyone who has ever ripped off a bandaid can attest to that.

I am a feminist.

Having said that, I will attempt to answer some of the many thoughts that are racing through your mind right now. That is assuming you are the average person."

Read full article at A Definistrat-ing Tree Hugger