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X-WR-CALDESC:Events for magpie
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TZID:Asia/Dubai
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260116
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260209
DTSTAMP:20260421T163305
CREATED:20260112T180856Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260112T180856Z
UID:10013232-1768521600-1770595199@magpie.ae
SUMMARY:Ras Al Khaimah Art 2026 Festival 
DESCRIPTION:In the last few years the Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival has grown into a solid contributor to the UAE’s arts and culture scene\, with a community-oriented twist to the mix of exhibitions\, performances\, workshops and film screenings. There’s always a theme – this year it’s ‘Civilizations’\, a catch-all which should be able to accommodate just about any kind of culture – but the characteristic feature is the community engagement and the strong sense of RAK itself being part of the festival. \nIt has an excellent site at Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village\, which is where most of the exhibitions and events happen – exhibitions are open for the whole of the festival (16 January to 8 February)\, but performances and other one-offs occupy the three weekends. \nThis first weekend sees guided art and heritage tours\, several workshops – including calligraphy\, light art\, traditional agriculture\, and a two-day Photowalk and Film Photography masterclass – and live performances. They kick off with AlMaydee’s soulful soft rock (Friday\, 9-9.45pm) and the Saturday stage gets Luiza (jazzy pop\, great voice) followed by the AFCENT Band (that’s the official US Air Forces Central ensemble with a signature mix of pop\, rock\, and big band jazz). \nElsewhere in the village there’s Alana Hicks with a one-woman show titled Voices in the Dark (“a thoughtful exploration of identity\, culture\, and the threads that bind us: Saturday 6pm) and James Scarr with his excellent Mime Show (Sunday 6pm). \nNew for 2026 is The Hidden Table\, a curated culinary programme that expands the festival into gastronomy by positioning food as a form of cultural storytelling; the first two weekends get Chama\, an open-fire dining experience by Portuguese chef Tiago Pazzini with no fixed menu (“each evening is guided by seasonality\, elemental cooking\, and instinct\, allowing cuisine to unfold as a live\, creative expression”). The final weekend it’s Restaurant Pine\, the creation of Northumberland chefs Cal Byerley and Ian Waller to celebrate “the rhythm of the seasons [and] a modern echo of ancient land”. \nChama will cost you AED 350 but entrance to the festival and most of the other happenings are free\, including the live music. Preregistration is required for the spaces-limited events like the workshops; check out the full first-weekend programme here.
URL:https://magpie.ae/event/ras-al-khaimah-art-2026-festival/
LOCATION:Al Jazeera Al Hamra\, Ras Al Khaimah
CATEGORIES:Community event,Festival
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260117
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260202
DTSTAMP:20260421T163305
CREATED:20260112T182305Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260112T182553Z
UID:10013237-1768608000-1769990399@magpie.ae
SUMMARY:Al Hosn Festival
DESCRIPTION:This living expression of Abu Dhabi’s Culture is always worth a visit. The emphasis is on heritage\, so the Al Hosn programme includes traditional souks\, performances (lots of ayyalah)\, food\, coffee\, kids’ workshops and more. It runs 4pm to 11pm daily.
URL:https://magpie.ae/event/al-hosn-festival-2/
LOCATION:Al Hosn\, Abu Dhabi
CATEGORIES:Festival,Heritage
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://magpie.ae/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/al-nosn-festival.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260121
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260128
DTSTAMP:20260421T163305
CREATED:20260113T170612Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T152756Z
UID:10013274-1768953600-1769558399@magpie.ae
SUMMARY:Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
DESCRIPTION:LitFest is back with the usual rich brew of panel discussions and conversations\, talks\, workshops\, family activities and the LitFest After Hours programme. It looks like the biggest and most varied yet\, so that probably means it will be the best … \nSome sessions are free (including workshops for beginner writers) but most are charged-for – AED 50 upwards (AED 200 for many of the single-author sessions\, AED 300+ for workshops\, AED 425 for the Desert Stanzas poetry-music performances under the stars). There’s a multi-day pass at AED 400\, which looks like a bargain – in fac it only gets you into Conversations\, Family Activities\, and LitFest After Hours\, but you could easily spend a lot more than 400 on those. \nMore multi-session pass options would be a good thing. So would a scheduler; there are 22 venue rooms in total and half-hour slots between 8am and 10pm across the seven days (not all of which are filled\, of course\, but there are more than 150 events in total) so it can get quite complicated looking for non-clashing events. There’s a PDF grid here which might help\, though it’s bit and difficult to use; something a bit more AI-ish would have been better – “is this mix of events doable?” or “will I have time to get from A to B?” for instance.
URL:https://magpie.ae/event/emirates-airline-festival-of-literature-2/
LOCATION:InterContinental Hotel\, Dubai Festival City\, Dubai
CATEGORIES:Festival,Words
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260123
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260202
DTSTAMP:20260421T163305
CREATED:20260119T170458Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260119T170458Z
UID:10013321-1769126400-1769990399@magpie.ae
SUMMARY:Sikka Art and Design Festival
DESCRIPTION:The 14th edition of what has become one of Dubai Culture’s flagship initiatives is back in Al Shindagha Historic District\, this year with the theme ‘Imagining Dubai: Identities of the Future’. \nThe festival promises “a diverse array of artworks” in gallery and public art formats\, workshops\, panel discussions\, live performances\, food and retail markets\, “and other activities”. As usual there doesn’t seem to be any specific advance information – no website\, no overall directory/guide – but the press releases says there will be more than 250 artworks showing in 16 houses. To find out what’s out when the Instagram feed is probably your best option\, but with less than a week to go it was still full of last year’s info. \nStill\, Sikka is always worth the trip – especially as it’s free to enter.
URL:https://magpie.ae/event/sikka-art-and-design-festival-4/
LOCATION:Al Shindagha\, Dubai Creek\, Dubai
CATEGORIES:Festival
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260123
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260202
DTSTAMP:20260421T163305
CREATED:20260120T150058Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260120T150058Z
UID:10013332-1769126400-1769990399@magpie.ae
SUMMARY:Reel Palestine
DESCRIPTION:Reel Palestine returns to Cinema Akil for its 12th edition\, running from 23 January to 1 February\,. The programme this year has 29 screenings\, including two Academy Award–nominated titles\, reflecting the breadth of contemporary Palestinian cinema across fiction\, documentary\, and short form. \nMost screenings are followed by a Q&A with the director or cast. Alongside the film programme\, the festival also includes two weekends of the RP Souk and a series of workshops. \nTickets for most screenings are AED 60. Note that Quoz Arts Fest takes place on 24 and 25 January\, so you’ll also need a ticket for that (AED 100 per day) before you can get to Cinema Akil …
URL:https://magpie.ae/event/reel-palestine/
LOCATION:Cinema Akil\, Warehouse 68\, Alserkal Avenue\, Dubai
CATEGORIES:Film
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Dubai:20260126T180000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Dubai:20260126T193000
DTSTAMP:20260421T163305
CREATED:20260119T141302Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260119T141302Z
UID:10013312-1769450400-1769455800@magpie.ae
SUMMARY:Museums\, Social Media\, and Public Space
DESCRIPTION:This NYUAD Institute talk considers how artworks operate across different contexts\, from museums and galleries to public spaces and digital circulation. Drawing on over 15 years of experience\, Bahia Shehab reflects on how audience engagement shifts when art is encountered within institutional settings versus when it is publicly displayed and exposed to everyday life. Through examples from projects in cities such as New York\, Istanbul\, Marrakesh\, and Hawaii\, the talk looks at how art travels\, remains relevant across geographies\, and is shaped by social media. \nThe speaker is a practising artist and a professor of practice in design (and founder of the graphic design programme) at The American University in Cairo\, where she developed a full design curriculum mainly focused on the visual culture of the Arab world.
URL:https://magpie.ae/event/museums-social-media-and-public-space/
LOCATION:NYUAD Institute\, NYU Abu Dhabi\, Abu Dhabi
CATEGORIES:Art,Talk
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