This week’s editorial musings from magpie’s nest
The quote All things have been given to us for a purpose, and an artist must feel this more intensely. All that happens to us, including our humiliations, our misfortunes, our embarrassments, all is given to us as raw material, as clay, so that we may shape our art Jorge Luis Borges
Summer in Venice We had a fun few days checking out the recently-opened Biennale Architettura and especially the UAE’s participation, Azza Aboualam’s very interesting Pressure Cooker exhibition. We overstayed, so the report we promised for last week has taken this long to go live. It’s worth it, though – read our feature here …
Short, Sweet and nearly done It’s finals weekend for Short+Sweet 2025 at the Junction – the best of the ten-minute playlets that have been competing over the last few weekends to reach this point. You get around a dozen plays per evening, so there’s guaranteed to be a real mix of styles and participants: tickets are AED 135 for Friday and Saturday, AED 175 for the grand finale on Sunday …
Treasure hunt DCT Abu Dhabi has named another 15 recipients of its Urban Treasures plaques for “long-standing businesses that have played a key role in shaping Abu Dhabi’s cultural and social landscape”. They include a collection of restaurants, perfume shops and confectionery makers, but there’s also a gym, a clinic, and Al Sidr Natural Honey (which is yummy). Here’s a link to all 60 of the treasures …
Who’d have guessed it? The world’s first ultra-luxury residential hospitality brand has launched in Dubai. Omoria Private Residences promises “a new era of ultra-luxury living … defined by cultural depth, personalised service, and a bold global vision … blends sophisticated design, holistic wellbeing, exclusivity, and a longevity-centric approach to modern living”. Of course it does.
Seeking performances Dubai Culture is inviting community theatres, art and music centres, production houses, and indeed any Emirati or resident talent to submit original work for the Dubai Youth Performing Arts Festival. Scheduled for November, the festival aims “to support and empower emerging artists in drama, music, and traditional folk arts”. Apply by 19 July. More info here …
See in Sydney Hoor Al Qasimi, who’s curating the 2026 Biennale of Sydney, is going with the theme ‘Rememory’ (“revisit, reconstruct and reclaim histories that have been erased or overlooked”) and has listed 15 Australian and 22 international artists for it …
Gameplay at ADU Abu Dhabi University is launching a four-year BA in Video Game Design. Also involved are DCT Abu Dhabi, which drives the emirate’s ambition to become a world centre for game design and will provide mentoring and internships; and – interestingly – Rubika, a newish, probably unique and definitely quite exciting specialist French college of video game design. More here …
Uni in Liwa (not) Also in Abu Dhabi, Liwa College has become Liwa University following UAE Ministry of Higher Education approval, with 30 undergraduate and postgraduate programmes on offer. There are campuses in Abu Dhabi and an outlier in Al Ain, though not as it happens in Liwa …
Starstruck Dubai’s fourth Michelin Guide lists a total of 119 establishments, including two that now have three stars (ZN by Björn Frantzén and Trèsind Studio) and two new one-star eateries (Jamavar and Manāo). There are now 19 restaurants in Dubai with at least one Michelin star …
Art now Several good-looking shows opening this week include Omar Al Gurg at Lawrie Shabibi, Ahmad Kasha at Ayyam Gallery, Malik Thomas Jalil Kydd at Carbon 12, Béchir Boussandel at Tabari, and a group show titled Architectures of the In-Between at Aisha Alabbar …
The apology Apparently a problem with the send meant that some readers didn’t get last week’s issue, or received it late. If you’d like to see what you were missing, the top-of-the-news summary (basically, this bit) is here; or you can read the whole newsletter (complete with what’s-on selections) here …
Tonight’s the Night Get in quick for the opening night of Shrek the Musical, another of the Courtyard’s PowerPointless Networking Nights, and Jo Koy at Etihad Arena …
Something for the weekend What’s the mystery image? Click on the dots, and keep on clicking to drill down to get a guessable solution …
Things we didn’t know no.94 Men in France have a 26% higher carbon footprint than women. Researchers say this is largely due to increased consumption of “gender stereotypical” goods – cars and red meat.
Earworm of the week Skunk Anansie : An Artist is an Artist
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