A group of men squat low over the pavement as they inspect a pile of shining rings that are displayed on a man’s crisp, white ghutrah.
A boy appears momentarily horizontal, mid-way through an acrobatic back flip, while on a wintry and wave-lashed beach a teenager sits astride his BMX. Ignoring the pony-riding youths that surround him, he focuses instead on a spotted dog that’s digging deep into the sand.
The images, each of which adheres in its own way to the photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson’s notion of the “decisive moment” but each of which are also ostensibly banal, represent three snapshots of everyday life in the Arab world – in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Morocco – not as it is depicted in newspaper headlines but as it is experienced on the ground.
Captured by Yoriyas Yassine Alaoui Ismaili, the beach picture is part of a series, Casablanca, Not the Movie, through which the Moroccan photographer hopes to encourage viewers to "leave the black-and-white Humphrey Bogart, Rick's Cafe, and breathy declarations of love to instead visit the real Casablanca". Alaoui Ismaili's images explore Morocco's biggest city, capturing streets and scenes he describes as simultaneously chaotic and organised at "perfect moments" when various layers of activity fall briefly in sync.
“I am looking for an unexpected moment which can happen only once. Through one photograph, we can possibly see, enjoy, ask questions and care more about a scene that we probably wouldn’t have noticed if it wouldn’t have been captured,” the photographer explains on his website. “This project documents such moments of contrast in order to give a close and personal view of Casablanca life from the perspective of a Moroccan, who was born, grew up and still lives there.”
That combination of the quotidian and the extraordinary has earned Alaoui Ismaili's image a place in the new street photography exhibition, The Arab Street, which is about to open at Dubai's community-focused photography centre, Gulf Photo Plus. The show has been curated by GPP's gallery manager, Miranda McKee, with two aims in mind: overturning stereotypes and providing something of an antidote to the kind of images that have come to define the region; and encouraging UAE-based photographers to take to the streets themselves.
“What better time than now to portray everyday life from a region too often misrepresented through imagery?” says the Canadian curator.
“Instagram feeds like Everyday Middle East do a wonderful job but unfortunately that’s not what people think internationally because they don’t get to see everyday life here.
“All they get to see is what makes the front page of the newspaper, and while we don’t want to deny that’s the case, that’s not the whole truth.”
Timed to coincide with GPP's forthcoming Street Week, a series of Fujifilm-sponsored workshops and events, The Arab Street follows on from a previous, internationally-focused street photography show that was held at GPP. It features the work of 35 photographers, each of whom were approached specifically, often with specific images in mind.
“We were looking for a variety of perspectives so we reached out to photographers that we knew would give us that,” says McKee.
These include several images taken locally, such as Sreeranj Sreedhar's picture of a truck being loaded at Dubai Creek, Joey Reginaldo's shot of young, shalwar kameez-clad boys playing football, and Cheerleaders by Silvia Razgova, all of which point to the UAE's ethnic diversity.
Another local image, Sincere Love by Ola Allouz, is informed less by Bresson's notion of the "decisive moment" and more by William Eggleston's commitment to finding beauty and meaning in the things and places that other people find commonplace or even ugly, an aesthetic that has overtaken Cartier-Bresson's since it first emerged in Eggleston's Guide, the catalogue to the photographer's controversial show that was mounted at the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA), in 1976.
In many ways, Allouz’s image represents the new default for what passes as contemporary street photography, which is perhaps not surprising considering her role in the UAE’s burgeoning street photography scene. Based in Dubai, Allouz curates the foto.UAE Instagram feed, which also acts as a platform for other UAE-based street photographers such as Hussain AlMoosawi, who has built a considerable following thanks to his carefully composed images of colourful construction hoardings, UAE national flags and old fashioned air-conditioning units.
For McKee, it is this kind of intense observation, rather than Cartier-Bresson’s ability to capture a fleeting moment of compositional poetry and brilliance, that makes street photography so important, especially in the current moment.
“Street photography can be in some ways the most challenging type of photography but it can also be the most accessible, and whether you are a hobbyist or not, you can pursue street photography on your own,” the curator explains.
“The people I speak to who do street photography regularly are much more aware of their surroundings and I think it’s more important than ever now to pursue things like this to really connect with people again and to use the opportunity to start talking to people and to pay attention to what surrounds you.”
The Arab Street runs at Gulf Photo Plus, Dubai, from Thursday, December 13, to January 27. For more information, go to gulfphotoplus.com
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Read more:
Tate Modern retrospective offers visitors the chance to experience Modigliani’s Paris studio
V&A eyes new overseas projects, inspired by Louvre Abu Dhabi
Dr Karima Alshomely on the inspiration behind The Emirati Burqa exhibition
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In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Oppenheimer
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
Profile
Co-founders of the company: Vilhelm Hedberg and Ravi Bhusari
Launch year: In 2016 ekar launched and signed an agreement with Etihad Airways in Abu Dhabi. In January 2017 ekar launched in Dubai in a partnership with the RTA.
Number of employees: Over 50
Financing stage: Series B currently being finalised
Investors: Series A - Audacia Capital
Sector of operation: Transport
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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Golden Shoe top five (as of March 1):
Harry Kane, Tottenham, Premier League, 24 goals, 48 points
Edinson Cavani, PSG, Ligue 1, 24 goals, 48 points
Ciro Immobile, Lazio, Serie A, 23 goals, 46 points
Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, Premier League, 23 goals, 46 points
Lionel Messi, Barcelona, La Liga, 22 goals, 44 points
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Sweet%20Tooth
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz GLE
Price, base / as tested Dh274,000 (estimate)
Engine 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder
Gearbox Nine-speed automatic
Power 245hp @ 4,200rpm
Torque 500Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.4L / 100km
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
INFO
