Water is a force that produces history, culture, language and social relations. Bodies of water shape human development, sustain trade and empire, and offer means of escape and refuge. The belief in water as the wellspring of life is a tale as old as time itself, held in memories written and recited, from the ancient Greeks and Egyptians, to the indigenous North American origin story of Turtle Island, to the Bible and the Holy Quran.
Over time, much has shifted in our understanding of water. Currently, water is in crisis; simultaneously scarce, through drought, and threateningly over-abundant, through floods and rising sea levels.
How can we understand this life force through its production of myth and its anchoring of spiritual beliefs? Can connecting to a range of world views relating to bodies of water as living beings transform our own approach to the climate emergency?
Bringing together works from around the globe that explore human relationships to water, ‘An Ocean in Every Drop’ asks us to think with water, following its flows through the past to inform our present.
With works by: Jumana Emil Abboud, al-Istakhri, Martha Atienza, Raven Chacon, Cian Dayrit, Léuli Eshrāghi, Asunción Molinos Gordo, Abul Hisham, Candice Hopkins, Sohrab Hura, Hussein Naserreddine, Thảo Nguyên-Phan, Daniel Otero Torres, Karan Shrestha, Fatima Uzdenova, Munem Wasif.
Detailed media alert and high-res images available here
Exhibition preview September 21, 2022, 6-8pm, all welcome.
The exhibition opens with a conversation between artists Daniel Otero Torres, Karan Shrestha, Fatima Uzdenova and exhibition curators Rahul Gudipudi and Nora Razian on September 21, 2022 at 6pm in the Project Space.
‘An Ocean in Every Drop’ – A conversation with artists Daniel Otero Torres, Fatima Uzdenova and Karan Shrestha
September 21, 2022 | 6-7 pm
Project Space
RSVP required. Attendees are welcome to stay after the talk for a preview of the exhibition, 7-8pm.
To mark the opening of ‘An Ocean in Every Drop’, join us for a conversation with exhibition artists Daniel Otero Torres, Fatima Uzdenova, Karan Shrestha and exhibition curators Rahul Gudipudi and Nora Razian.
‘An Ocean in Every Drop’ brings together works from around the globe that explore human relationships to water through myth, spirituality, folk traditions and lived experiences.
The conversation will focus on the research and thinking behind each artist’s work as well as engage with the broader thematics of the exhibition. Fatima Uzdenova will talk about the process behind her commissioned works that connect to Sufi traditions of meditation and contemplation with water. Daniel Otero Torres will share the research and broader context behind his monumental installation Lluvia, which celebrates the ingenuity of vernacular architecture created by the Embera community in the Choco region of Colombia. Karan Shrestha’s multi-faceted works look at the changes in relationships and access to water in Nepal brought about through development projects and the privatization of infrastructure.
Daniel Otero Torres. b.1985 Lives and works in Paris, France.
Daniel’s works have been exhibited in numerous institutions such as the Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2021-2022); Kestner Gesellschaft, Hanover, Germany (2022); Drawing Lab Paris (2021); the MACAAL, Marrakech, Morocco (2020); the Espacio 23 of the Jorge Perez Collection, Miami (2019); La Tôlerie, Clermont Ferrand, France (2019); FLAX Foundation, Los Angeles (2019); Musée Régional d’Art Contemporain MRAC Sérignan, France, including his solo exhibition (Dé)placements (2017) and the collective show Bandes à part (2018); Contemporary Art Centre of Villeurbanne, Rhône-Alpes, France (2016); Kunstverein Sparkasse, Leipzig, Germany (2014); Heidelberg Kunstverein, Germany (2011); and the Bullukian Foundation, Lyon, France (2010), among others. Most recently he has exhibited in Manifesto of fragility: the 16th Lyon Biennale, France (2022).
Fatima Uzdenova. b.1978 Lives and works in Dubai, UAE.
Fatima holds a MA Sculpture degree from the Royal College of Art, London, United Kingdom. She is alumna of the Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Emerging Artists Fellowship (SEAF), in partnership with Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, United States of America. Selected exhibitions include: ‘The Last Equestrian Portrait’ (2018) at Spring/Break Art Show, NYC, USA; ‘Table Manners’ (2018) at Chalton Gallery, London, UK; ‘Re: Over everything which exists under the sky’ (2019) at Gasworks, London, UK. Uzdenova is a recipient of the inaugural Al Burda Endowment from the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development (MCKD), UAE; ‘Staple: what’s on your plate?’ at Hayy Jameel, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Karan Shrestha. b.1985 Lives and works in Nepal and India.
Karan Shrestha’s practice incorporates drawings, sculpture, photography, text, film and video that speak to the complex, entangled relations of Nepal’s recent history. Shrestha presents projects that are a synthesis of an archive of the terrain, political histories, transient memories and a speculative world that suspends reality, probing all the while at the fraught rhetoric of progress that is constantly pitted as the only way forward. Shrestha has shown work at the Kathmandu Triennale 2020 (2022); Savvy Contemporary, Berlin (2022); Mardin Biennale (2022); Museo Madre, Naples (2021); 10thAsia Pacific Triennial, Brisbane (2021); Dhaka Art Summit (2020) among others.
Library Circles: Rashed Qurwash
September 14, 2022- February 13, 2023
Jameel Library
Library Circles is a series of research, talks and experimental interventions by UAE practitioners in the Jameel Library and Jameel Arts Centre. The programme explores alternative research methodologies and representations with a focus on “thinking in public”.
For the Fall iteration of Library Circles, Jameel Library presents a research display by artist Rashed Qurwash.
Qurwash investigates the Jaddaf neighborhood in Dubai and the practices it had once held through images, documents and interviews conducted with people who have occupied the area at various capacities. In addition to individual accounts, Rashed investigates Jaddaf’s urban planning prior to the development within the local area in the 2000s.
This iteration of Library Circles will feature two public programmes – announcements to follow.
Rashed Qurwash (b.1990, Dubai, UAE) lives and works between Dubai and Los Angeles. Qurwash’s practice joins film, set design, and sculpture to explore themes of collective identities shaped through traditions, rituals, religion and trade. His practice relies on subtextual content to mirror collective identities, heavily coded existences and their functionalities within society.
Rashed is a recipient of the Salama bint Hamdan Emerging Artists Fellowship (2018), the Cultural Foundation Residency in Abu Dhabi (2022)
He has a BSc in Political Science and a Minor in Architecture from Drexel University (2014). He is currently pursuing his Film/Video MFA at the California Institute of the Arts (2025).
Other workshops and programming
Back by Popular Demand | Family Workshop: Talli Printmaking on Tote Bags
25 September, 2022 | 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
Project Space
All Ages
RSVP here
In this workshop developed by Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council families of all ages are invited to explore the ancestral Emirati Craft of Talli, a handwoven textile technique. During this workshop, participants learn about the cultural heritage of this craft that’s been passed down for generations.
Irthi reintroduces the traditional craft through its collection of specially designed hand-made stamps, immersing participants in its different styles and patterns, learning to print, design and decorate their own eco-friendly tote bag.
The workshop held by Irthi’s Amal Farouq Ismail is free-to-attend.
Registration for this event is now full. Kindly RSVP to add your name to the waitlist in case of cancellations.
This workshop is suitable for all ages. No prior art experience is required. All materials and equipment are provided.
Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council
Founded in Sharjah with a vision to create an artisan economy for women. Irthi aims to preserve and represent traditional and modern crafts across the MENASEA and Central Asia regions, working with partner organisations and championing artisans and designers. Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council focuses on women’s empowerment professionally and socially.
The council aims to provide a fresh narrative for women by developing new opportunities and delivering social development programmes and vocational training. Irthi preserves the skills and rich cultural heritage of the UAE for current and future generations through its initiatives.
Amal Farouq Ismail
Amal Farouq Ismail is the Skills Development and Programmes Senior Executive at Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council. Amal is passionate about engaging children and youth through activities that combine traditional and contemporary techniques. Amal is motivated to learn new skills for preserving heritage crafts and raising awareness, ensuring sustainability efforts along the way.
Covid 19 safety regulations:
Jameel Arts Centre abides by all Covid-19 safety regulations as per UAE law. Sessions are limited to 12 participants. Further information about the measures can be accessed here.
Reading Group: Eco/Sci/Fi
September 25, 2022 | 11:00am - 1:00pm
Jameel Library
RSVP here
Jameel Library Reading Groups resume with Eco/Sci/Fi. These reading group sessions provide participants with science fiction writing that explores themes within and around ecology. Each session within this themed series features a different reading group leader, whose aim is to foster a discussion around sustainability, environmental issues and technology within speculative futures (and pasts).
In this session of the Eco/Sci/Fi series, participants will be reading excerpts from The Incredible Tide by Alexander Key translated into Arabic by Merna Al Rasheed, and watching corresponding excerpts from its anime adaptation by Hayao Miyazaki ‘Future Boy Conan’. The session is led in Arabic by writer Husam Hilali.
The reading groups are free and open to all. Registration is required, as space is limited. Registered participants are expected to commit to the reading material and to attend the session they have registered to maintain a respectful, informed and open discursive environment.
Hussam Hilali
Husam Hilali is a Sudanese writer based in Dubai. Hiali has worked as a journalist, news correspondent in addition to working in theatre and television as a writer and producer. He has published two collections of short stories, as well as an unpublished book of poetry that received the Osama Danasory Award for Poetry in 2018.
Bimonthly workshops from September 2022 to January 2023: The Water Diviners IV: Collective Story-Making Inspired by Folklore and Water
September 10, 2022 - January 14, 2023
Online, Sahaab
RSVP here
This workshop is related to the exhibition ‘An Ocean in Every Drop’ (see below)
As part of her long-term practice on Palestinian folk tales and their connection to landscape and water sources, artist Jumana Emil Abboud will be leading a participatory workshop exploring natural water sources in Dubai and the wider U.A.E. Through discussions, collective readings and writing exercises, workshop participants will contribute to the co-authorship of a story of water; thinking through both personal histories and relationships to sites of water as well as tackling broader questions of humanity’s entanglement with ‘the natural’.
Water divining- the ancient art of locating natural sources of water- is the conceptual driver for this workshop series, where storytelling is used to locate sites of water geographically, historically and culturally.
The workshop series will culminate in a performance based on the co-authored texts and imaginaries, to be performed collectively at selected sites of water on Sunday, January 15th 2023.
The initial meeting for the workshops will take place at the Jameel Arts Centre, continuing online approximately every two weeks. Please note this is a series of workshops and participants are expected to commit to the full series.
Session will be led in English but writings can be in a language of choice
Jumana Emil Abboud uses drawing, video, performance and text to navigate themes of memory, loss, and resilience. Her creative practice is inspired by Palestinian oral history, with a focus on folktales and their connection to actual sites within the landscape, and to water sources in particular. Abboud lives and works in Jerusalem and London where she is currently a PhD candidate at Slade School of Art.
The dates, times and locations of the workshops are as follows:
Saturday 10 September 2022 Online, 11am-3pm with lunch break
Saturday 1 October, 2022 Online 3pm-5pm
Tuesday 11 October, 2022 Online 6-8pm
Saturday 29 October 2022 Online 3pm- 5pm
Tuesday 08 November, 2022 Online 6-8pm
Saturday 26 November 2022 Online 3pm- 5pm
Saturday 10 December 2022 Jameel Arts Centre 3pm- 5pm
Saturday 14 January 2023 Jameel Arts Centre 3pm- 7pm with break
Expert-led gardening programme: My Winter Garden
September 24, 2022 - December 10, 2022 | 9:00am-12:00pm
RSVP here
The Friends of Jaddaf Community Garden and Dr Nasser Rego, founder of SoWeGrow and Zoë: farm for life, are back this summer with an inspirational programme for all gardening enthusiasts. In collaboration with Art Jameel, ‘My Winter Garden’ is a twelve-week programme designed for all to learn firsthand how to grow organic vegetables as experts do.
The programme allows participants to cultivate gardens that thrive in the high temperatures of Dubai and is facilitated by an organic farmer. The sessions are workshops that range from theoretical to practical and deep dive into permaculture, transplanting, composting, and community building. The programme takes an organic approach to building and looking after your garden while reconnecting with nature to boost your holistic well-being. Participants will get a chance to nurture gardens and explore how they can contribute to their community by learning about agriculture, education and sustainability.
Join Dr Nasser Rego, organic farmer and educator, and gardening enthusiast Amin Rashidi, from The Friends of Jaddaf Community Garden, for an introductory session about ‘My Winter Garden’ on Wednesday, 7th and 14th, September at 7:00pm at Jameel Arts Centre to learn more. Whether you’re a beginner with basic knowledge of plants or an experienced grower looking to hack the art of growing abundantly, this course is designed for you.
The programme is aimed at participants aged 16+ and runs every week for 3-hour sessions; limited spaces are available (early booking recommended). The programme cost is AED 2,200 (USD 600) per person, and course fees include a take-home starter kit to kick-start your gardening journey!
If you book with friends and family, you can avail a 10% discount on your total bill. On the payment page:
A. Select the number (Qty). of persons (has to be more than one person) registering for the programme and
B. Apply the following discount code: JAMEEL10OFF
Terms and Conditions apply.
Creative Careers Day: So, You Want to Work in the Arts?
October 23, 2022 | 10am – 6pm
Jameel Arts Centre
Bookings are limited: please register your school or university ASAP via this link.
High school and university students (and their families) are invited to save-the-date for Creative Careers Days, the UAE’s first, annual festival devoted to exploring your future in the arts.
Free and open to all creatively-minded youth – families and teachers also welcome
No registration necessary; please follow Jameel Arts Centre social media for programme updates
Featuring more than 25 booths manned by leading arts organisations and universities* Creative Careers Days gives students (and teachers) a unique opportunity to meet and discuss ideas with key artists, curators and industry specialists. Inspirational talks, informational workshops – including how to create and pitch your portfolio – and behind-the-scenes-at-the-museum tours run throughout the day.
Programmes highlight a diverse range of creative careers pathways; options in tertiary education, locally and internationally; student and postgraduate open calls, residencies, internships and volunteering opportunities, and more.
Additional programming includes an opportunity to feature your school or university’s talent in the UAE student band and music ensemble showcase!
Students are invited to join career surgery sessions to receive expert advice and guidance on navigating the creative industries. An additional multimedia research zone features behind-the-scenes videos and resources, while the Jameel Library will display a special range of resources on pedagogy and arts education for both students and teachers.
*Creative Careers Days features participation by: Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation, Alserkal Arts Foundation, American University of Sharjah, Art Dubai Group, Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, The Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation, Cinema Akil, The Foundry, Gulf Photo Plus, Higher Colleges of Technology, The Institute for Emerging Art, Ishara Art Foundation, Khosh Bosh, Maraya Art Centre, Ministry of Culture and Youth UAE, The National Pavilion UAE – La Biennale di Venezia, New York University Abu Dhabi, Salama Bint Hamdan Emerging Artists Fellowship (SEAF), Sharjah Art Foundation, Tashkeel, Warehouse 421, Zayed University and many more!
For more details, please email learning@artjameel.org
Currently on view
Jameel Library Commissions: Khalid Mezaina
July 15, 2022 - July 15, 2023
Online + in Jameel Library
Jameel Library’s upcoming digital commission features a study of regional textile and talismanic practices with entries released every fortnight starting July 2022 on Jameel Arts Centre’s website.
Exploring themes and techniques on surface design, ceremonial textiles, costumes for the stage and the magical world of talismans, Khalid Mezaina‘s commission is two-fold: writings and a physical textile piece that unfolds throughout the year-long duration of the commission.
This project expands on the textile and talismanic folk practices to create new connections between traditional craft practices, contemporary textiles and the library’s collection.
Khalid Mezaina is an illustrator and textile artist from Dubai. Along with a BS in Visual Communication from the American University of Sharjah in 2006, Khalid graduated in 2018 from the Rhode Island School of Design, with an MFA in Textiles. His commissioned and self-initiated projects range from art prints, installations and murals, to designs for apparel, stationery and publications.
Khalid has participated in projects and residencies both in the UAE and abroad. He has also been featured in regional and international exhibitions including ‘Emirati Expressions IV: Conventions of Art’ (2015); ‘Portrait of a Nation’ (Abu Dhabi Festival, 2016 and Berlin Art Week, 2017); and ‘From Barcelona to Abu Dhabi: Works from the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art (MACBA) in dialogue with the Emirates’ (2018).
World Weather Network
June 21, 2022 - June 21, 2023
Jameel Arts Centre, Online
Art Jameel is one of 29 arts organisations from around the world forming the World Weather Network, a global ‘weather reporting’ project running from June 2022 to June 2023 bringing together artists, writers, scientists and environmentalists from around the world to reflect on changing climates and relationships to the weather from a variety of contexts.
Art Jameel’s weather station explores atmospheric humidity, a central climatic marker of the Arabian Gulf, issuing reports in the form of narrative podcasts by commissioned artists and writers exploring humidity through three main thematics: The Threshold, Sweat and Labour, and Technofutures.
More information, weather-related projects and Podcasts can be accessed via jameelartscentre.org
Exhibitions:
‘Proposals for a Memorial to Partition’
June 18, 2022 - February 19, 2023
Proposals for a Memorial to Partition’ brings together proposals by artists and writers for an imagined memorial to the partitions that produced the modern nation-states of South Asia. Curated by Murtaza Vali, these proposals range from artworks and texts to sketches and maquettes, presenting a multitude of poetic and speculative approaches to a historical event that resists narrow categorisations.
For high-resolution images, click here
Exhibitions
‘Fahd Burki: Daydreams’
On view until October 9, 2022
‘Daydreams’ is Fahd Burki’s first survey exhibition, bringing together works spanning the last fifteen years of the artist’s practice. Burki’s paintings, drawings and sculptures are inspired by a wide range of influences including architecture, nature and various strands of contemporary popular culture. The selection of works range from his figurative work, through to abstraction, and a selection of commissioned reliefs. A publication featuring commissioned texts by Murtaza Vali, Saira Ansari and Dawn Ross accompanies the exhibition.
For high-resolution images, click here
Conrad Shawcross in the Park
Formation III: The Dappled Light of the Sun, 2015, Weathering steel, 792.1 x 792.1 x 475 cm, Art Jameel Collection.
Throughout his career, Conrad Shawcross has experimented with geometries and topologies; these constructions are conceived as systems, sometimes modular, sometimes mechanical, which could be theoretically extended infinitely into space. Formation III: The Dappled Light of the Sun, revolves around the natural patterns of geometry: from a simple, mathematical form, Shawcross has created an immersive work that stands on three tripods, six metres high. The geometric structures give an impression of being organic, comprised of branching, tree-like forms made up of thousands of tetrahedrons, creating a canopy over part of Jaddaf Waterfront Sculpture Park.
About Conrad Shawcross
Conrad Shawcross (b. 1971, lives and works in London, UK) has a BA Fine Arts from Ruskin School of Art, Oxford and a MFA from Slade School of Art, London. Imbued with an appearance of scientific rationality, Conrad Shawcross’ sculptures explore subjects that lie on the borders of geometry and philosophy, physics and metaphysics. Inspired by different technologies, the artist’s structures may retain in appearance the authority of machines – yet, they remain enigmatic, filled with paradox and wonder. Some have an absurdist melancholy feel, while others tend to the sublime, substituting the purely functional for phenomenological experience.
Art Jameel Shop
The Art Jameel Shop this year presents a special thematic selection of gift items, children's books, ceramics, artisanal incense burners, money envelopes to collect all the Eid cash, and cookbooks with inspiration for culinary creations that will spice up iftar and suhoor tables.
Available in the flagship shop at Dubai’s contemporary art museum, Jameel Arts Centre, and online, with worldwide delivery.
The Art Jameel Shop is home for all that’s current in contemporary art, design, architecture and culture – Shop here. Support art everywhere. To browse the full range of offerings, check the Art Jameel Shop online here.
Teible
Jameel Arts Center, Ground Floor
Bakery: 8 am - 4 pm; breakfast: 8 am - 2 pm; Bistronomy Menu: 10 am - 4 pm and 6 pm - 11:30 pm; closed on Tuesdays
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