This week’s editorial musings
from magpie’s nest<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The quote:<\/mark><\/strong> We hardly ever realise that we can cut anything out of our lives, anytime, in the blink of an eye | Carlos Castaneda<\/em> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Update<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> Five weeks and counting, and maybe a second week of rain too … Remote learning for schools and colleges<\/strong> has been extended across the UAE until 17 April<\/strong> as attacks continue … But NYUAD<\/strong> has closed its Saadiyat campus until further notice after Iran warned last weekend that US universities with outposts in the Gulf were \u201clegitimate targets<\/strong>\u201d in retaliation for strikes on Iranian universities. Classes will continue remotely … Biggest fuel price rises<\/strong> we can remember, as UAE follows most of the rest of the world \u2013 from 1 April Super 98<\/strong> is AED 3.39<\/strong> per litre, up from AED 2.59; diesel<\/strong> is AED 4.69<\/strong>, was a bargain AED 2.72 …Dubai businesses <\/strong>are getting a AED 1bn support package<\/strong>, to be rolled out from 1 April for the next six months \u2013 deferred government fees, extended customs grace periods, streamlined residency pathways, liquidity relief for hospitality … Experience gifting outfit Ithara<\/strong><\/a> reports 95% of businesses on its platform remain operational and “continue to adapt” …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Flight control<\/mark><\/strong> Flightradar24’s Gulf Airline Recovery Index<\/strong><\/a> measures the relative recovery of select Gulf airlines \u2013 Air Arabia, Emirates, Etihad, FlyDubai, Qatar Airways \u2013 in terms of how they\u2019re getting to their prewar average number of daily flights. And for more immediate travel, flight-tracking app Flighty<\/strong><\/a> has a free online dashboard showing delays and disruptions at airports<\/strong><\/a> around the world …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Postponement watch<\/mark><\/strong> The Bluewaters Art Festival<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 transforms the island into \u201ca 360-degree open-air gallery\u201d \u2013 has been postponed from April to November … World Art Dubai<\/strong><\/a> has rescheduled to 19\u201322 November at a new venue \u2013 the Dubai Exhibition Centre, Expo City (rather than DWTC). Conveniently this \u201caligns the show with more favourable travel and market conditions\u201d and supports \u201cits strategic evolution into a larger festival-style art experience\u201d … Abu Dhabi Choral Group’s production of The SpongeBob Musical<\/strong>, scheduled for June 4-7, has been postponed with no new date yet …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Selective renting<\/strong><\/mark> betterhomes says rental listings have increased<\/strong> by 23% and tenant enquiries are down<\/strong> 16%, with the market entering \u201ca more selective phase \u2026 signalling a shift in market dynamics\u201d (aka the war?). On the other hand a duplex penthouse<\/strong> on the 87th and 88th floors of the Burj Khalifa has been leased for AED 12m pa<\/strong>, the highest ever annual apartment rental<\/strong> recorded in the UAE. \u201cIn times of volatility, capital does not retreat, it becomes more selective\u201d said the lucky letter …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Orange peel<\/mark><\/strong> Organisers said 8m people<\/strong> turned out for the No Kings protests<\/strong><\/a> in the States last weekend … <\/p>\n\n\n\n Distaff side<\/mark><\/strong> The\u00a0Association of Women in the Arts<\/strong><\/a> (\u201cthe only global network dedicated to championing women across the full arts and cultural ecosystem\u201d) is launching a\u00a0Honours List celebrating \u201cleaders who have shaped today\u2019s arts landscape and those steering the future\u201d during the Venice Biennale vernissage. Now that\u2019s going to be an interesting list \u2013 and the Nominating Committee of \u201cconnectors and mobilisers from across the cultural world\u201d (sorry about the quotes, but a PR person wrote this) includes the likes of\u00a0Sarah Harrelson<\/strong>\u00a0from Cultured,\u00a0Kimberly Drew<\/strong>,\u00a0Gillian McVey<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Melissa Gronlund\u00a0<\/strong>(once of these parts)…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bizlist<\/mark><\/strong> Cinema Akil <\/strong><\/a>has been compiling what it admits is an imperfect (but still growing) list of 1,000+ homegrown businesses<\/strong> \u201csimply to share the love\u201d. This is an uncurated self-nominated collection, and it\u2019s a not especially clever dataset on a Google Sheet, but it does make for interesting reading \u2013 there are so many similar businesses, plus there are some really niche offers. Check it out here<\/strong><\/a>; and you can add your own business here<\/strong><\/a> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cultural education<\/mark><\/strong> Abu Dhabi\u2019s cultural sites are rolling out dedicated programmes linking their collections to the school curriculum, which sounds like a terrific idea especially if Louvre Abu Dhabi\u2019s Museum Curriculum Portal<\/strong><\/a> is indicative: it maps more than 148 artworks and artefacts across core subjects with direct alignment to national and international curricula. There are also free training sessions for teachers (register here<\/strong><\/a>, or email learn@louvreabudhabi.ae<\/strong><\/a>) …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Museum winners (and some losers)<\/mark><\/strong> The Louvre Abu Dhabi comes midway in The Art Newspaper’s listing of the 100 most popular museums<\/strong><\/a> in 2025. We looked at numbers (with a caveat on Louvre AD’s) and our report is here<\/strong><\/a> … <\/p>\n\n\n\n Job ops 1<\/mark><\/strong> Aisha Alabbar<\/strong><\/a> is looking for an experienced Gallery Director<\/strong>. Prerequisites: leadership qualities, deep understanding of the art market, a passion for connecting with artists, collectors, and institutions. Email a r\u00e9sum\u00e9 to info@aishaalabbar.art<\/strong><\/a> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Job ops 2<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> Art Jameel<\/strong><\/a> has a raft of job opportunities at Hayy Jameel<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Assistant Curator, Learning Manager, Content Creator, Librarian and more. Start ASAP for all of them. They\u2019ll probably go to Saudis, but here\u2019s the application link<\/strong><\/a> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Music ops<\/mark><\/strong> MiZa Radio<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(\u201cBuilt for sound. Open to the community\u201d) is inviting DJs, producers, singers and musicians to pitch a session \u2013 DJ set, prerecorded-plus-live instrument, or entirely live.\u00a0Here\u2019s the application link<\/strong><\/a>; deadline is 17 April … And\u00a0MusicNation<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is looking for new interpretations of the\u00a0UAE National Anthem<\/strong>; selected submissions will be merged into a single, professionally produced track as \u201ca collective tribute that celebrates the UAE through music, unity, and expression\u201d. Submit an MP3\u00a0here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0before 3 April \u2013 \u201cstay true to the anthem but make it yours\u201d. Must be in F major, 88bpm,\u00a0 AI-generated submissions will be rejected\u00a0…<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Prof dev op<\/mark><\/strong> Numoo<\/strong><\/a>, The NYUAD Arts Center\u2019s professional development programme for performing artists, is open for applications<\/strong><\/a> for the 2026 edition \u2013 three intensive full day weekend sessions over the summer plus continuous independent work. Selected artists also get AED 10000 on completion. Apply by 12 April. Info here<\/strong><\/a> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ceramic op<\/mark><\/strong> Contemporary Makers<\/strong><\/a> is a Guggenheim Abu Dhabi<\/strong> programme for young people aged 18-25 featuring mentorship, collaboration, and hands-on learning en route to becoming a maker \u2013 ceramics<\/strong>this time, other crafts to follow. No prior experience needed, \u201cjust passion, curiosity, and commitment\u201d. There are sessions every Thursday, 5\u20137pm at MAKE Abu Dhabi from 13 April through 4 June. Apply here<\/strong><\/a> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Save AED 210<\/mark><\/strong> Stay in any of 171 participating hotels in Abu Dhabi for a couple of nights or more and you\u2019ll free entrance to Louvre Abu Dhabi, Zayed National Museum, and Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi<\/strong>. You\u2019ll have to be quick though \u2013 the offer ends 5 April …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Useful app of the week<\/mark><\/strong> Not as app as such, just a magic bagful of clever tips ‘n’ tricks that will let you\u00a0use Google like a pro<\/strong><\/a>:\u00a0many of them will bypass Google’s attempts to serve you ads and AI ‘summaries’. Or to put it another way: \u201cGoogle is constantly interpreting you. It swaps in synonyms, personalises results based on your history, and decides what you probably meant rather than returning what you typed. Most of the time that interpretation is invisible.\u00a0These tools<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0are how you override it\u201d\u00a0…<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Something for the weekend<\/mark><\/strong> Pindrop<\/a><\/strong> is a geography game \u2013 place a pin on the map where you think the clue relates to. Sometimes easy (capital cities in Europe), sometimes tough (Argentinian waterfalls). Try it here<\/a> …<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Things we didn\u2019t know no.94<\/mark><\/strong> Frank Sinatra<\/strong> lived 30,105 days (b. 12 Dec 1915, d. 15 May 15 1998). There are 40,214,302 miles of road in the world (says Wikipedia). So to have travelled \u201ceach and every highway\u201d as claimed in the song \u2018My Way<\/strong>\u2019 he would need to have maintained an average speed <\/strong>throughout his entire life of 55.68 mph<\/strong>. Thanks to 1inhalfabillion and b3ta newsletter <\/strong><\/a>for this valuable info …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Earworm of the week<\/mark> <\/strong><\/a>Ladytron : I believe in you<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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