by Sanaa Kamal
GAZA, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- Young balance artist Mohammed al-Shinbari, from the Palestinian Gaza Strip, needed a few minutes to balance four cups on top of one another in various positions without using of adhesives, supports, wires or rings.
The 24-year-old man never imagined that his special talent in balance art would make him famous in war-torn Gaza.
"Some people believe that I'm a magician. But others believe I defy gravity," al-Shinbari said as he prepared for another show at home.
Al-Shinbari, who lives in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun, also masters the art of rock balancing which is a performance art that involves placing some combination of rock or stone in arrangements which appear to be physically impossible.
"I can even balance bicycle on those rocks," the young man said proudly.
Among his most striking performances is balancing leaning gas canisters over one another, making them look as if one is pumping gas into the other.
He also managed to balance a table at the edge of a slanting pipe wrench.
"It was not easy to master this type of arts. I did not learn physics, which is the basis for balance art, but I was able to learn it professionally through practice," al-Shinbari said.
Al-Shinbari said that focus, calmness and patience are the basics of mastering the art of balance.
"It is natural to fail more than once before mastering it, but you should always try without despair, because success is always the culmination of failure," he said.
"Once the basic fulcrum of any object is known, it is easy to control it and place it in a way that appears to defy gravity," al-Shinbari said.
"Every time I succeed in balancing objects in an impressive way, I feel like I have given some of the magnetic energy in my body to these items."
Al-Shinbari participated in a local competition for young talents under the title "Gaza Summer," where he managed to win the first place for his balance art talent, which helped increase his popularity in Palestine.
"The competition gave me more motivation to work harder and learn more the art of balance, so as to be well prepared to participate in Arab and international competition, not only in Gaza," al-Shinbari said.
The Gaza Strip has been placed under a tight Israeli blockade since 2007 after Islamic Hamas movement controlled the district.
The blockade has pushed Gaza's over 2 million population deeper into poverty with unprecedented rates of unemployment among young people.
"Despite the challenges, young people can make their own ways towards success if they believe in their talents and work seriously to refine them," the young man said passionately.
