Dubai Culture lines up an exciting list of art and cultural events to enhance the quality of life in the region

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•  From art exhibitions to photographic displays; from theatrical performances and literary readings to educational workshops and art auctions, a veritable artistic and cultural feast has been laid out for Gulf residents and visitors

 The Arab World is witnessing a cultural renaissance and Dubai is playing a pivotal role in not only prolonging, but sustaining, this rebirth, particularly in the Gulf.
 
The Emirate’s varied and growing cultural activities and events are adding a lustrous new dimension to its already globally acknowledged weight in regional economics, finance and commerce.
 
Recently, the Emirate’s authority for overseeing artistic and cultural excellence was restructured into “Dubai Culture” with its own ambitious Five-Year Plan that aims to holistically transform the cultural landscape of the region and bring it up to a par with the best cities of the world.
 
To enhance and deepen the cultural renaissance in the region, Dubai Culture has created an impressive calendar of cultural excellence that is designed to add significantly to the lifestyle offering and enhance the pleasure, enjoyment and entertainment index of Gulf residents and visitors.
 
An eclectic mix of events and exhibitions, performances and screenings and displays and educational interactive sessions, have been created so that in the coming days, there is something for every taste to enjoy and experience.
 
“Dubai is a city that hosts 200 nationalities – a rich diversity of customs, traditions, languages, art and skills. We are creating something here that will appeal to all – young and old, individual and family. This is not only an opportunity to uplift ourselves beyond the everyday workplace and to sail on the wings of the imagination of a poet or an artist or a dramatist, but to also learn about each other and about art,” says Saeed Al Nabouda, Chief Projects Officer at Dubai Culture and Arts Authority - Dubai Culture.
 
“Accordingly, the new calendar of activities and events is part of our new vision, which is to position Dubai as a vibrant, Arabian, global city that shapes 21st century culture and arts in the region and the world,” he adds.
 
The rich melting pot of events, covering visual arts, theatre, educational camps, musical performances, cinematic and fashion events, are taking place on an on-going basis, sometimes overlapping.
 
For example, currently on is an art exhibition – Silent Conversations - at Taksheel Gallery, which will run until the end of April. Concurrently, ‘Children of the World’ and ‘Melange’ have been running. The former, depicting 21 bronze cast sculptures of children from around the world, has been on at Art Sawa since 19th of March. It will end on 16th of June. Melange has been running at DUCTAC at the Mall of Emirates since March 31st and is literally a melange of electric and vibrant works by artists living in Dubai.
 
Cinematic Excellence
 
Providing a break from exhibitions is the Gulf Film Festival (April 9-15), an annual destination festival for the international film community to discover the best of Arab cinema from Gulf countries.
 
The Gulf Film Festival also presents international cinema to fulfil its primary objective to develop film culture in the Gulf and create greater opportunities for the region’s filmmakers to screen their films and build on future projects.
 
Photographic Art
 
For aficionados of the photographic art, several events are taking place or will be held throughout the Emirate. Later this month, Dubai Culture will support PhotoWorld-Dubai (April 20-22) at the Dubai International Exhibitions and Conferences Centre. It is the 5th edition of the digital photography and imaging exhibition for the Middle East.
 
From April 23-25, will be a display of documentary photography by the celebrated Camille Zakharia at Art Sawa in the DIFC District. Other events include the ongoing ‘Metaphors’ by Syrian artist Jaber Al Azmeh (March 14-April 20); ‘Anchored Ocean’ (April 29-June 6) by Subodh Kerkar at The JamJar; the ‘Phoenix Series’ by Rodin Hamidi (April 4-26) at XVA Gallery; ‘Between the Eye and the Object Falls a Shadow…’ by Reza Aramesh at B21 Gallery (April 14-May 17); and Fine Art Photography by Swiss/French Photographer Corrine Vionet at The Empty Quarter (April 12-May 4).
 
Musical Extravaganza
 
Apart from fashion and films, Dubai Culture did not forget music. It hosted the International Peace Music Festival from April 3-7 across various locations in Dubai.
 
Music is often referred to as an international language able to unite people from different backgrounds and cultures. In the same spirit, the Emirates Youth Symphony Orchestra perfectly represents a future generation living in Dubai which is a multi-cultural environment in every sense of the word.
 
The banner of peace was adopted for the festival name because children from all over the world and music in general are the symbols of unity among nations that can promote world peace.
 
Educational Experience
 
The aim of Dubai Culture is not only to organise and encourage and support quality and world-class art and cultural events, but also to raise awareness and education among the region’s residents and visitors about the value of art and culture.
 
Art and culture are both a tool for enjoyment and enhancing the quality of life, and also as a means of investment that has the potential to gain in monetary value. This in turn will encourage potential artists to enhance their skills and find a platform to display their art and earn returns.
 
Consequently, an educational camp was organised from April 5-8 at Art Sawa, which also held a workshop on Easter Eggs painting and card making on April 9. A Batik workshop on Indonesian Traditional Art in Contemporary Style was presented on April 13 and 16 by Art Attack Gallery.
 
Literary & Theatrical Feast
 
How can literature not be part of any society’s growth and development? Some of the major events organised to celebrate literature and theatrical excellence included the ‘Kutub’ a re-reading of the classic Palace Walk (Bayn Al Qasrayn) by Naguib Mahfouz at Third Line Gallery.
 
A play ‘The Would-be Gentlemen’ based on the Sun King, Louis XIV’s 17th Century France is being held at DUCTAC on April 24 and 25 and May 8 and 9.
 
Laughter, the Best Medicine
 
Later this month (April 22-24) will be the Dubai Comedy Convention at the Dubai Media City. The three-day festival will feature international comics who are on the frontiers of global comedy.
 
Headlining the opening night will be Omid Djalili, the British/Iranian stand-up comedian and Hollywood celebrity. The second night will feature the veteran performer Tom Papa known from his many appearances on late night U.S. talk shows and as the frequent opening act for the popular Jerry Seinfeld. Also on the billing are the original cast members of the hit television show ‘In Living Color’, Tommy Davidson (closing night) and many other funny acts.
 
Art Auctions
 
To round off the the cultural feast will be a brace of auctions organised by the world-famous auctioneers Christie’s. The first on April 29, will be the auction of the jewels of Umm Kulthum, at Emirates Towers Hotel.
 
The greatest Arab singer of the 20th Century was known as ‘The Shining Star of the Middle East’ (Kawab El Sharq). The sale will include four items from her jewellery collection, the highlight of which is an emerald, diamond and pearl set comprising a brooch, a bracelet and a pair of ear pendants.
 
On 29th April, Christie’s will hold their Middle Eastern Art Sale at Emirates Towers Hotel. On offer will be a selection of works by Saudi Arabian artists in their widely anticipated sale of International Modern and Contemporary Art -- the first time that a group of work from Saudi Arabia has been included in an international auction.
 
The sale follows Jewels and Watches to be held on April 28th and will include works by six contemporary artists including Ahmed Mater Al Ziad Aseeri and Lulwah Al Homoud, reflecting the vibrancy of the Kingdom’s young artistic talent.
 
William Lawrie, specialist in charge of the sale, says: “Last October we introduced Turkish artists for the first time in our sales and this season we have secured an exciting, select group of works from contemporary Saudi Arabian artists. I first saw their work in London at the progressive ‘Edge of Arabia’ show at the SOAS Brunei Gallery at the end of last year and we decided that they would provide additional artistic talent to our sales which includes works from Egyptian, Turkish, Iranian, Lebanese, North African, Syrian, Iraqi, western and Moroccan artists.”
 
There are many other events on the calendar including a paintings exhibition by celebrated Egyptian artist Adel El Siwi (April 8-30) at Artspace Gallery; Scraps (March 10-April 20), Magic of Persia (April 6-9) and Hidden Treasures from the Ateliers of Sharjah (April 5-May 5) at Total Arts Gallery as well as Faith Versus Fear by Cynthia ‘Reta’ Richards and Union of Senses by Anna Nightingale (April 1-30) at Art Couture.
 
 “Our mission is to actively support and drive Dubai''s development as a dynamic culture, heritage and arts centre by creating an environment that facilitates and inspires cultural activity. Armed with the famed ‘Dubai Spirit’, we are sure to surpass expectations,” Al Nabouda points out.
 

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