magpie – Page 26 – Art Performance Design Words: your guide to culture, design and creativity in the UAE

Art for all in Dubai

18 January 2023

On the eve of Art Dubai, Dubai Culture has invited applications for the first commission of Dubai Public Art. This is a new government-funded initiative aimed at providing the city with significant public art installations created by UAE-based artists; it [ … ]

15 years of LitFest: Isobel Abulhoul on the life of books

18 January 2023

This is the 15th year for the Emirates Festival of Literature. There will be around 250 authors and other session participants in town; that’s a far cry from the 65 or so who were at the inaugural edition in 2009, [ … ]

Life, laughs, death and despair by Danú

11 January 2023

It’s always a pleasure to flag up new work by someone you trust to deliver the goods. For us, Danú Theatre is an ever-reliable source of interesting theatre, always well directed and cleverly staged; and it may not be a [ … ]

Coming to Quoz: a weekend of festival fun

11 January 2023

Quoz Arts Fest – described as “the only festival in Dubai where art, food, live music, performance and educational activations converge” – has now been running annually since 2012, usually during the last weekend of January. This year’s tenth QAF [ … ]

Tuwaiq Sculpture: 30 more public art installations for Riyadh’s ambitions

11 January 2023

The fourth edition of Tuwaiq Sculpture began at the start of this week, featuring 30 artists from around the world producing large-scale sculptures that will become permanent public art installations in Riyadh’s urban landscape. Themed ‘Energy of Harmony’, this edition [ … ]

The birth of a movement: art in the Gulf

15 December 2022

When did modern art appear in this region and why does so little of the world know about it? Khaleej Modern: Pioneers and Collectives in the Arabian Peninsula, a landmark exhibition surveying the emergence of modern art in the Arabian [ … ]

A Biennale for Islamic Arts

14 December 2022

The inaugural Islamic Arts Biennale, scheduled for Jeddah from 23 January to 23 April 2023, claims to be “the world’s most significant showcase of contemporary and historic works of Islamic art from across the globe”, celebrating Islamic art and culture [ … ]

Three more UAE intangibles for the UNESCO list

8 December 2022

UNESCO’s ever-expanding ‘Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’ has acquired three new entries from the UAE at its last meeting, in Rabat at the end of November. Noura Al Kaabi, UAE Minister of Culture, said she was [ … ]

Anticipating LitFest

7 December 2022

We’ve been browsing the newly released schedule for the upcoming Emirates Airlines Festival of Literature, and as always there are some major attractions. First impressions: the Arabic programme looks great, broader than in past years. There’s a lot of accessible [ … ]

Making more of Art Dubai

6 December 2022

Art Dubai has unveiled details of the programme and partnerships for its 16th edition, which runs 3 to 5 March 2023. It’s an impressively expanded portfolio that sits alongside the core art fair – “one of our strongest ever gallery [ … ]