ART EVENT London-Edition of the Global Art Forum Introduces UAE’s Artistic and Cultural Scene

Global Art Forum, UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, 2018 / Courtesy of Global Art Forum

A special summer edition of the Global Art Forum, in partnership between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and Art Dubai, titled UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, was presented to a full house of art enthusiasts at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. The event, which was attended by the Minister of Culture & Knowledge Development in the UAE Noura AlKaabi as well as the UAE Ambassador to the United Kingdom Sulaiman Almazroui, gathered some of the most notable protagonists from the fields of art, architecture, cinema and futurism in the UAE responded to an increasing international interest in the growing artistic and cultural scene of the UAE, and each of the panels was followed by a series of questions from the audience.

Sulaiman Almazroui commented: “UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE was an ideal stage to present current ideas on the UAE’s cultural scene to a wide, international audience, as well as to introduce some of our key players in this field. The event was a success and a great platform for conversations and exchange, which we look forward to building upon.”

Global Art Forum, UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, 2018 / Courtesy of Global Art Forum

Global Art Forum, UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, 2018 / Courtesy of Global Art Forum

Global Art Forum, UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, 2018 / Courtesy of Global Art Forum

Commissioned by Shumon Basar, panels and speakers of UAE PAST, PRESENT FUTURE included:

TIMELESS: His Excellency Zaki Nusseibeh, UAE Minister of State and Cultural Advisor at the Ministry of Presidential Affairs and Hans Ulrich Obrist, Artistic Director, Serpentine Galleries

Hans Ulrich Obrist led a conversation with HE Zaki Nusseibeh, who started out as Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan’s personal interpreter, and whose life of culture, education and diplomacy has grown in parallel with the making of a new nation.

Global Art Forum, UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, 2018 / Courtesy of Global Art Forum

PAST: Ahmed and Rashid bin Shabib, Cultural Advisors at the Office of Public and Cultural Diplomacy in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation

In this presentation the cultural entrepreneurs explored the theme of cities, which are populated as much by unrealized architectural projects as realized ones. Case studies included Abu Dhabi and Dubai, where seminal architects such as Oscar Niemeyer and Walter Gropius were responsible for ambitious plans which never materialized, but whose drawings outline fascinating alternative histories and futures.

Global Art Forum, UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, 2018 / Courtesy of Global Art Forum

THE PRESENT: Butheina Kazim, Founder of Cinema Akil, and Munira Al Sayegh, Curator

This broad ranging discussion between two of the most significant voices in today’s thriving UAE art scene covered Cinema Akil’s fiercely independent ethos; the expansion and diversification of the art ecology as well as cultural highlights such as the opening of the Louvre in Abu Dhabi and the growth of the Sharjah Art Foundation.

Global Art Forum, UAE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, 2018 / Courtesy of Global Art Forum

THE FUTURE: Dr. Noah Raford, Chief Operating Officer and Futurist-in-Chief of the Dubai Future Foundation

Dr. Noah Raford introduced the audience to The Dubai Future Foundation, which is pursuing a dynamic, design-led approach to systemic transformation in the UAE. From the Museum of the Future (opening end of 2019) to city-scale prototypes of 3D printed buildings, self-driving cars, and urban farms, this talk explored a new approach to creating the future, together.