Qatar- Region 'rich in its cultural offerings'
Date
3/16/2016 1:07:55 AM
(MENAFN- The Peninsula) H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Chairperson Qatar Museums speaking at the event. (BELOW) Some of the guests at the event.
DOHA: H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Chairperson Qatar Museums hosted on Monday a gala dinner at the new headquarters of Qatar Foundation (QF) the force behind the establishment of Education City.
Coinciding with The New York Times ‘Art For Tomorrow; conference the dinner welcomed some of the world’s leading artists curators art collectors and museum directors.
The new headquarters which were designed by renowned Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas sit at the heart of one of the most creative hubs in the city of Doha and use technology to enhance the learning experience in a unique urban landscape. Speaking at the gala dinner H E Sheikha Al Mayassa described different examples of how urban landscapes are evolving ambitiously within existing city frameworks including in Doha.
“In Jeddah the now annual fixture of the Jeddah Art week hosts a number of contemporary art shows exhibitions and visits to heritage houses. In Dubai the Al Serkal Avenue is an initiative that converts old warehouses into destinations of art and design.
“The Ashti Foundation in Lebanon also provides a number of activities supporting artists from the region and connecting the region to the rest of the world. In Doha both the recent conversion of the fire station into an artist in residence programme and our jury competition to convert the flour mills into a new museum are underway” H E Sheikha Al Mayassa said.
She added: “The region is rich in its cultural offerings. There are so many places to visit from archeological sites to new buildings in Saudi Arabia Oman Kuwait Bahrain and the UAE.
“Moreover major events are taking place in the next decade from the Expo in Dubai in 2020 to the World Cup in Doha in 2022. Contemporary times are therefore embedded into our regional narratives.”
The gala dinner took place on the penultimate day of The New York Times “Art for Tomorrow” conference which saw more than 300 delegates from the arts public and private sectors tourism experts city planners and business developers from 28 countries.The Peninsula