This week’s editorial musings
from magpie’s nest<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The quote:<\/mark><\/strong> From such crooked timber as humankind is made of nothing entirely straight can be made\u00a0Immanuel Kant<\/em> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n No worries<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong>\u00a0Not in the Gulf, anyway. That\u2019s according to\u00a0a Gallup survey<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0which asked people in 107 countries what they thought was the\u00a0world\u2019s most important problem<\/strong>. Some 32% of UAE residents reported \u201cno problems at all<\/strong>\u201d when asked to rank their top concerns \u2014 higher than any other country in the world, with carefree Kuwait and Bahrain ranking\u00a0second and third …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Art Basel Qatar visited<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> Art Basel Qatar clocked\u00a0more than 17,000 visitors<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0for its inaugural edition (by comparison last year\u2019s Art Dubai had between 21,000 and 30,000, depending on whose report you believe). The general feeling seems to be that it was a success artistically \u2013 Global Director of Art Basel Fairs\u00a0Vincenzo de Bellis<\/strong>: “this week has affirmed what we hoped Art Basel Qatar could be”. Artistic Director\u00a0Wael Shawky<\/strong>: \u201cseeing the artist-led presentation format resonate so clearly this week has been incredibly rewarding” \u2013 and possibly commercially too, though that might be a slow burn if judged by other art fairs.\u00a0ArtNet<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0reported several six-figure sales, several to institutions; and the organisers could report that representatives from\u00a0 … Qatar continues<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> Art Basel Qatar may have had some of the feel of a non-commercial art event like a biennial; but the real thing is coming along this November in the form of Rubaiya Qatar<\/strong><\/a>, \u201ca new nationwide multidisciplinary contemporary art quadrennial\u201d from Qatar Museums\u2019 project development arm ALRIWAQ Art + Architecture. It will include several exhibitions, the flagship being Unruly Waters<\/strong><\/a>; this will have works by more than 50 artists, inc many original commissions \u00ad\u2013 those signed up include Lawrence Abu Hamdan<\/strong>, Sophia Al Maria, Mohamed Bourouissa<\/strong>, Alia Farid<\/strong>, Lydia Ourahmane<\/strong>, and Marina Tabassum<\/strong> … <\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, the irony<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> Dubai\u2019s Museum of Illusions<\/strong><\/a> is offering a Valentine\u2019s Day deal<\/strong><\/a> (two tickets for AED 90) …<\/p>\n\n\n\n SAF residencies<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> The second cohort of artists for Sharjah Art Foundation\u2019s 2025\u20132026 Residency Programme<\/strong>, supporting artists pursuing experimental and interdisciplinary practices, comprises Richi Bhatia; Rai; Monya Riachi; Azzah Salwaa;\u00a0Zena\u00e9ca Singh; Joar Songcuya; Gian Spina<\/strong>; and Abdullah Tabaza<\/strong>. They\u2019ll be working at Bait Obaid Al Shamsi and the Kalba Ice Factory to 30 March …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ted advanced<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong>\u00a0Overenthusiastic editing in the last newsletter led us to promote\u00a0DDG\u2019s Father Ted<\/strong><\/a> shows by a whole month: the actual dates are 6 and 7 March<\/strong>. Apologies and heads will roll. It\u2019s still recommended, though …<\/p>\n\n\n\n What’s an\u00a0Ambedkarite Opera?<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> We wanted to find out more about Kavan<\/strong><\/a>, a groundbreaking music-and-poetry collaboration by the Mumbai-based music and street theatre group Yalgaar Sanskrutik Manch and the Nalanda Arts Studio from Bangalore which is coming to NYUAD Arts Center this weekend<\/strong><\/a>. So we fired questions at Nalanda\u2019s Abhishek Majumdar, who directs this show and is keen to emphasise that it not simply an anti-caste show: \u201ca satirical opera gives us a way to speak about deep-rooted inequalities in society \u2013 and every society has such inequalities\u201d. Our feature is here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0…\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Beginning ends<\/mark><\/strong> The national tour of the UAE National Orchestra<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s inaugural concert series, The Beginning, had more than 3,500 attendees and \u201cstrong audience engagement\u201d. Its season is continuing with one-offs: next up \u2013 Russian Classics<\/strong><\/a> (Shostakovich, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky) at NYUAD Arts Center on Saturday; Echoes of Time<\/strong><\/a>, a symphonic poem based on Ibn Araby’s writings by Nadim Tarabay, composer of The Beginning (5 Mar, Dubai Opera); and Faces of Love<\/strong><\/a>, which \u201ctraces love\u2019s journey through melody, from its first spark to its deepest mystery\u201d (26 Mar, Fujairah) …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who\u2019s corrupt now?<\/mark><\/strong> The Corruption Perceptions Index<\/strong><\/a> ranks 182 countries worldwide by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (squeaky clean). For 2025 Denmark<\/strong> and Finland<\/strong> are top (89 and 88 respectively); the UAE<\/strong><\/a> is rising (21st position, score now 69) while the UK<\/strong><\/a> and USA<\/strong><\/a> are slipping past the Emirates on the way down (UK 20th, score 70; USA 29th with 64) …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Opening today<\/mark><\/strong> The NYUAD Art Gallery<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s big Spring show is another goodie \u2013 a celebration of the work and influence of the Baghdad Modern Art Group<\/strong><\/a>, undoubtedly one of the most important art movement of the mid-Century Middle East. Impressively, around three dozen artists are represented …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Useful app of the week<\/mark><\/strong> Tock<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0is a minimal, simple macOS menu bar timer \u2013 one active timer at a time, controlled by keyboard with simple natural-language input (like \u201845m\u2019 or \u2018coffee 5 mins\u2019). Open source and free. More here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three more openings this week<\/mark><\/strong> Gorgeous hot colours from Luis Olaso<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s new nature paintings at JD Malat Gallery \u2026 Reimagined\u00a0cartographies by Khozema Al\u2011Aaed<\/strong><\/a> at Firetti Contemporary show how the land absorbs everything we do \u2026 Nazilya Nagimova<\/strong><\/a> explores memory, migration, and the search for belonging via felt snails and more at NIKA Project Space …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ending Sunday<\/mark><\/strong> By contrast with the newer Manar Abu Dhabi and Dhai Dubai, Sharjah Light Festival<\/strong><\/a> is more conventional \u2013\u00a0illuminating iconic buildings (and some natural landmarks), albeit with (some) active light shows. Still very good, though, and free: this year the 14 or so installations are scattered around the emirate, too \u2013 it\u2019s not just Sharjah City …<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Animenia Abu Dhabi<\/strong><\/a> you\u2019re invited to \u201cstep inside a world inspired by the hidden corners of Neo-Tokyo, where glowing signs, colourful characters, and offbeat discoveries bring anime culture to life\u201d. Five days of cosplay, music, food, and J-pop culture at Manarat Al Saadiyat. Not magpie\u2019s thing, but reports from younger correspondents are enthusiastic …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Movies Under the Stars<\/strong> is a programme of classic films screened outdoors at 6.30pm at the rather lovely BEEAH Headquarters<\/strong><\/a> in Sharjah, curated by Cinema Akil and all free. Tonight it\u2019s Spirited Away<\/strong><\/a>; next The Grand Budapest Hotel<\/strong><\/a> (13 Feb), Stuart Little<\/strong><\/a> (14 Feb), Costa Brava, Lebanon<\/strong><\/a> (15 Feb) …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Useful app of the week<\/mark><\/strong> Sheetsbase<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0is a free Chrome extension that helps you understand and write Google Sheets formulas. You can tell it what you want to do and it will give you a formula to do it; also explains what the formulas do,\u00a0gives you\u00a0shortcuts to access your most used formulas. More here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0…\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Something for the weekend<\/mark><\/strong>\u00a0Colormuse<\/strong><\/a> is a stylish version of an apparently simple shooter game \u2014 change the colour of your ammo to damage different enemy types, absorb matching bullets to power up your attacks, and move around the 2D playing area to dodge the rest. Exhausting.\u00a0Try it here<\/a>\u00a0…<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Things we didn\u2019t know no.94<\/mark><\/strong>\u00a0A $180 burger<\/strong> was being sold at Super Bowl LX. To justify the price, the LX Hammer Burger featured bone-in beef shank, a roasted mirepoix demi-glace, \u00a0and a blue cheese fondue \u00a0that cascades down the burger on all sides, all crammed between two brioche buns. It weighs 1.5kg.<\/strong> No, we don\u2019t know if anyone bought one (but probably yes) …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Earworm of the week<\/mark> <\/strong>Mandy, <\/strong><\/a>Indiana<\/a><\/strong> : Ist Halt Son<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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more than 85 museums and foundations<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0worldwide attended …<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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