For Abdulrauf Khalfan, his national pride is best expressed through his art.
In the Emirati artist’s latest work, he has created a shimmering golden portrait of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid as a gift for the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai on his 71st birthday on Wednesday, July 15.
Spending his time at home due to the pandemic, Khalfan’s artistic impulses kicked in. “During this stay at home [period], things automatically came to me. My mind was running with creative ideas,” he says.
The self-taught artist decided to build on a series of works where he carved portraits of public figures into hose pipes. Lining the pipes together, he used a blade to pare out the yellow exterior and form the image of his subject with the object’s black interior.
Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and Charlie Chaplin are some the people who have inspired him to art, but Khalfan's favourite and most common subjects are Sheikh Mohammed and the Al Maktoum family.
Khalfan has also produced pipe portraits of Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed and Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai.
His latest project on Sheikh Mohammed took 12 days to complete. Instead of sticking to the pipes’ usual yellow, Khalfan decided to use gold leaf for the first time as a way to highlight his appreciation for the man in the portrait. The result is a framed golden image of Sheikh Mohammed wearing a top hat during a racing event.
“This pandemic has shown how the rulers are taking care of the country,” he says. “I feel proud of my country, my rulers and the medical workers who have helped in this time. We are blessed to live in this country.”
The 36-year-old Khalfan, who also works in a bank, has been making art for a decade. In his more recent works, he creates playful, imaginative paintings filled with elements of everyday Emirati life with his own whimsical motifs.
One shows a woman in a burqa surrounded by an array of dreamlike objects – a rose in an hourglass, a multi-coloured banner, a white dove.
Khalfan has also made several tributes to the UAE and its leaders, such as his "three-finger art" series, which is inspired by Sheikh Mohammed’s signature gesture. In 2013, the Ruler explained that it symbolises “win, victory and love”.
For his series, the artist mounts canvas on to plywood panels cut into the three-finger shape. He then paints with three brushes in one hand – each one standing “win”, “victory” and “love”, he explains – to produce his broad, colourful strokes.
Adding layers of vibrancy and motion, he also drips paint on to the canvas using a cluster of three bottles. “I want it to be something unique. I want people to feel this artwork,” he says.
Most of the three-finger paintings focus on Sheikh Mohammed, depicting portraits of the Ruler in various outfits, including his military uniform and traditional kandura.
Khalfan has yet to meet the Ruler in person, but says he hopes his work will show his love for the UAE.
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.7L/100km
Price: Dh133,900
On sale: now
Meydan racecard:
6.30pm: Handicap | US$135,000 (Dirt) | 1,400 metres
7.05pm: Handicap | $135,000 (Turf) | 1,200m
7.40pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes | Group 3 | $200,000 (T) | 2,000m
8.15pm: UAE Oaks | Group 3 | $250,000 (D) | 1,900m
8.50pm: Zabeel Mile | Group 2 | $250,000 (T) | 1,600m
9.20pm: Handicap | $135,000 (T) | 1,600m
Background: Chemical Weapons
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SRI LANKA SQUAD
Upul Tharanga (captain), Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella
Lahiru Thirimanne, Kusal Mendis, Milinda Siriwardana
Chamara Kapugedara, Thisara Perera, Seekuge Prasanna
Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal, Dushmantha Chameera
Vishwa Fernando, Akila Dananjaya, Jeffrey Vandersay
PROFILE OF CURE.FIT
Started: July 2016
Founders: Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori
Based: Bangalore, India
Sector: Health & wellness
Size: 500 employees
Investment: $250 million
Investors: Accel, Oaktree Capital (US); Chiratae Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, Kalaari Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Piramal Group’s Anand Piramal, Pratithi Investment Trust, Ratan Tata (India); and Unilever Ventures (Unilever’s global venture capital arm)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh100,000 (estimate)
Engine 2.4L four-cylinder
Gearbox Nine-speed automatic
Power 184bhp at 6,400rpm
Torque 237Nm at 3,900rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.4L/100km
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Teachers' pay - what you need to know
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May
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The biog
Name: Younis Al Balooshi
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Doctorate degree in forensic medicine at the University of Bonn
Hobbies: Drawing and reading books about graphic design
