In an Al-Monitor article in 2013, I suggested that partly because of the civil strife, traditional core cities in the Arab world such as Damascus, Cairo and Baghdad are facing, as well as increased cultural investments by Gulf states, the center of gravity for art and culture in the Arab world was shifting eastward to Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Doha. The article created controversy both within the Gulf states and the wider Arab world. Read more »
Arts & Culture
Capturing the Ephemeral: An Interview with Sultan Al Qassemi on Art and Technology
In this interview with Creative Time Report, Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi, co-director of Art Dubai’s Global Art Forum, connects the themes of this year’s conference with broader conversations about art, culture, politics and technology in the Middle East. Read more »
Young Artists in the GCC
Young Khaleeji artists, with and without the support or knowledge of their respective governments, have over the past few years challenged the status quo and shattered stereotypes about what was previously perceived to be a passive populace. Read more »
Art After the Internet
In this nimble, malleable, and responsive sphere, are artists enabled with an autonomy from art and its institutions? Could the Internet allow artists a means to jettison the formal structures and encourage a different kind of artistic expression? Or does it simply re-enforce real-world realities online? Read more »
Marwan’s exhibition reminder of Syria’s cultural destruction
In numerous corners of the Arab world, modern and historic artifacts are at best being neglected and at worst being destroyed. Libya, Iraq, Palestine and Algeria have all suffered conflict in the past few decades, but none more so than Syria, which has seen centuries-old communities, markets, architecture and art that took years, sometimes decades, to construct suffer decimation in a matter of months from regime and rebel artillery. In Syria, after the weapons are laid down and the foreign mercenaries depart, it will be the Syrians themselves who rebuild the country. Read more »
Egypt’s Long History of Activist Artists
Egyptian artists were deeply involved in spearheading, capturing, and influencing the January 2011 uprising. Today a new generation of Egyptian activist artists carry the mantle of social justice and human rights. At times, their work takes a humorous angle, in the form of cartoons and political satire printed in newspapers, perhaps targeting a niche audience. Read more »