QUOZ 2013
The second edition of QUOZ, a one day art festival taking place in Al Quoz is back this Saturday, 23rd November 2013. Last year's edition was a fun day out (you can read my review of it here), with a good turn out. I'm looking forward to seeing what's in store this year and hoping for an even bigger turn out.
QUOZ is open to all ages and anyone interested in the arts arts and culture. Its aim is to give visitors an opportunity to discover the local arts scene and engage with the gallerists, artists, creatives and cultural minds in the community.
The programme for this year's edition is bigger and will cover more than 30 venues with 40 events from 10am-10pm. The programme has been put together in partnership with Art Dubai and Dubai International Film Festival and will include exhibitions, music, dance, gallery guided tours where you will be able to meet the artists in some of the galleries, a pop up book shop, fashion, design, film screenings, panel talks, lectures and even a food market.
The complete schedule of events can be found on QUOZ's website. You can also download the programme and map of all the venues here.
Here are my top picks for the day which I hope will encourage you to attend and to spread the word:
10AM - 1PM
Public Art Engagement at thejamjar
In collaboration with The Domino and the British Council, London-based muralist Nazir Tanbouli will feature at thejamjar leading live and interactive activities for visitors of all ages as part of the Art in the Public Realm scheme.
www.nazirtanbouli.wordpress.com
12PM - 2PM
Exhibition opening: Weaving Gaps at Empty 10
In collaboration with 1x1 Art Gallery, Empty10 will present a solo exhibition of works including video and embroidered installations by Italian artist, writer and poet Cristiana de Marchi.
Nostalgia: Souvenirs of the mind at Jamm Art Gallery
Mohammed Al-Kouh, Cinema Qarnata (2012)
A group exhibition of photography and paintings in which the artists explore a period or place with personal associations, in partnership with Al Bareh Art Gallery, Bahrain.
Journey to Yemen at Total Arts
Total Arts at The Courtyard invites you to explore this series of photographs which present Yemen through the lens of 13 acclaimed photographers and a filmmaker who travelled to the country in 2009.
1PM - 3PM
Open Day at The Courtyard Playhouse
Art and theatre enthusiasts are invited to experience and participate in improvisation theatre, workshops, performances and more in this newly developed contemporary performing arts venue.
The Courtyard Playhouse is also running a crowd funding campaign to raise money to help to complete the space. You can read more about it here.
1PM - 4PM
Capsule Arts Pop-Up Shop
Exclusively for QUOZ, local artists will be working live in the studio and visitors will have the chance to buy a selection of limited edition art prints, alongside original art and design objects.
2PM - 4PM
Guided Tours
J+A Gallery
With a focus on 20th century design objects including rare Bauhaus and Art Deco pieces, explore the history of design with the gallery owners and curator Sebastian Jaroslawski.
www.facebook.com/JAGalleryDubai
The Third Line
Join The Third Line team for a detailed exploration of Sherin Guirguis’ work in the main gallery, whilst Raja’a Khalid will lead a walk through of her show ‘Southeast to Armageddon’ in the Project Space.
Sherin Guirguis, Untitled (Bab Huda) - detail, 2013, Mixed Media on hand cut paper, 274.32 x 182.88 cm
Sherin Guirguis 'Passages//Toroq'
investigates post-colonial themes of political, cultural and social dogma and feminist activism within the framework of the Egyptian diaspora, both in the public and private spheres. Delving deep into the building blocks of culture and identity, specifically from the approach of a diaspora artist, she presents her interpretation of what it means to be defined by the transformative events of the moment.
Raja'a Khalid, American Envoy, 2013, Archival Inkjet Print, 37 x 30 inches
Raja'a Khalid's 'Southeast to Armageddon' showcases a small selection of images from the Middle East chapter of her ongoing 'Minor Histories Archive’ project. With an intention to question the objectivity of certain public documents, this body of work focuses on how the discovery of Middle Eastern oil in the 1930s was depicted in popular Western press at the time, and the American perception of Gulf oil companies in the forties and fifties.
3PM - 6PM
Guided Tours
Carbon 12
Curator/writer Katrina Kufer will provide a further insight into the works of Berlin-based artist Michael Sailstorfer's 'Try To Reach the Goal Without Touching The Walls' whose artworks playfully explore space, motion and how we function in the world.
Gallery Isabelle Van Den Eynde (IVDE)
'Approaching Entropy' by Hassan Sharif, is a series of new works meticulously rendered on paper and assemblages of mass produced materials governed by chance and order.
Green Art Gallery
Alessandro Balteo Yazbeck, Chronoscope, 1951, 11pm, 2009-2011. In collaboration with Media Farzin. (Installation view) | Single channel HD video installation inсl. screenplay booklets, sofa and table, 24:49 min, B & W, sound | Dimensions variable, Ed. 5 + 2AP. Photo: silversalt, courtesy of Artspace, Sydney
For the first time in the region, view the award winning video work 'Chronoscope 1951' by Alessandro Balteo Yazbeck alongside a guided tour by Director Yasmin Atassi of the group show 'Statue of Limitation'.
Grey Noise
Ingrid Hora, Positions of how to lead
Gallery Director Umer Butt will lead a tour of ‘Dear Leader’, a solo show of new works by Ingrid Hora inspired by the relationship between individuals and masses, and between control and society.
Lawrie Shabibi
Nabil Nahas, Serendipity, 2013 Acrylic on canvas 304.8 x 152.4 cm 120 x 60 in
Head to Lawrie Shabibi and experience a collection of sumptuous 3D paintings by Lebanese artist Nabil Nahas, from his series ‘Fractals’ and ‘Galactic’.
6PM
Guided Tour
Gulf Photo Plus
Jaime Puebla, Comic Con. Dubai, 2012
There will be a guided tour of the recently opened photography exhibition, Cabinet of Curiosities featuring a refreshing perspective of the UAE as captured by locally based photographer, Jaime Puebla.
4PM - 5.30PM
Premiere of A.I.R Dubai 2013
The screening will take place in A4 Pop-Up Space.
In the lead-up to Art Dubai and Sikka Art Fair each year, the Artists in Residence (A.i.R.) program brings together three Emirati artists, three international artists and a curator-in-residence for an intensive period of collaborative work and exchange.
In this documentary commissioned by Tashkeel, award-winning filmmaker Mahmoud Kaabour explores the creative inspirations and aspirations of the 2013 resident artists: Ebtisam Abdulaziz, Reem Falaknaz, Ammar al Attar, Joe Namy, Dina Danish, and Yudi Noor, working alongside curator Bérénice Saliou. The film explores the influence of urban space on these artists, from London, Amsterdam and Beirut to Dubai's Al Fahidi heritage area with its famous wind-towers and courtyards.
The residents' diverse artistic voices and media provide a colorful and dynamic entry point to the contemporary art scene of Dubai, with insightful commentary from the four partners behind the annual A.i.R. residency program: Tashkeel, Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, Art Dubai and Delfina Foundation (London).
5.30PM - 7PM
Panel Discussion in A4 Pop-Up Space: Indie Print Publishing in the UAE
Campus Art Dubai in partnership with DCAA will bring together editors to debate the role of print in the digital world, critique versus citizen journalism and telling locally relevant stories.
6.15PM
The Fridge
Dance Performance and Lecture
'I Laban You!' is short dance-lecture-performance about the meaning of one word. Choreographer and performer Monica Antezana was once asked to make a dance piece about what interested her at that moment. She had in mind two topics to investigate: a famous dance person or her favorite food.
She started researching both topics. Thanks to one tiny detail she discovered that she could fuse both topics into one! That is how Monica put words, science, music, symbols and objects on the move. The Bible, Southeast Asia politics, ghosts, pens, bacteria.
I love the title of this and actually can't wait to see this.
8PM
The Fridge
Live Music
Dubai's hottest new ambient-electro outfit Parallel Sound System will take the stage with a guest appearance from The Boards.
www.facebook.com/ParallelSoundSystem
7.30PM - 10PM
Film Screenings hosted by Dubai International Film Festival
Two films will be screened in the A4 Pop-Up Space.
'Silence: All Roads Lead to Music', a film featuring four musicians who meet for the first time.
'Daddy ABC', an animated short that follows an Emirati father as he is left to care for his new-born child.
All Day
Art Animations at Salsali Private Museum
View art animations in the cinema installation, part of the 'Cinema', an exhibition of cinema-related works.
Hope some of the above will encourage you to go QUOZ on Saturday. I leave you with this video of highlights from last year's QUOZ. If you are in Dubai, please don't miss this year's edition.