During the recent Sikka Art and Design Festival, visual artists, performers, musicians and designers came together at Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood for concerts, readings, screenings and to produce new murals in the cultural area’s famed narrow alleyways.
Eight artists from the UAE and the region created pieces during the event, which ended last month, inspired by the spirit of the district. These will be on display for at least six months.
'Al Fahidi Beauty Tree'
Emirati artist Saggaf Al Hashemi’s work is called Al Fahidi Beauty Tree and it represents his vision of peace, beauty and love. It is a three-dimensional artwork inspired by the theme of the festival, which was “celebrating art, celebrating growth”.
'Tree of Wisdom'
Malaysian-Chinese artist Gary Yong created a piece called Tree of Wisdom. It combines abstract and figurative styles, and focuses on wisdom as a human value. It reflects the artist’s perspective that a single thought or idea can grow and expand, to influence and inspire others.
'I-Live'
This mural, called I-Live, by Russian artist Evgenia Silvina and Belgian artist Grimm Van Gestel, imagines an alternate dimension. It features an “android character" who sets forth their own perceptions and realities into the world via energy. It encompasses images of nature, computer data and elements of Dubai life.
'Tech Naash'
Bahraini artist Mahmoud Al-Sharqawi, who is known by his stage name Huvil, made Tech Naash, a display that merges the worlds of heritage and technology through a traditional dance in a virtual urban world.
'Music Sounds Better with You'
Music Sounds Better with You, by Egyptian artist Perryhan El Ashmawi, who lives in Bahrain, explores the ideas of cultural spirit and contemporary innovations colliding. “Innovations in the fields of technology, experiences and modern trends have become an influential part in various aspects of life, from work, entertainment, communication and relationships, and with them, traditional ways of life are transformed to others that are more advanced,” El Ashmawi says. “My mural is in line with the festival's theme and Al Fahidi spirit – it explores the beauty that comes from mixing ancient and modern.”
'Sisterhood'
Sisterhood was created by French artists Anne Laure Romagny and Robin Chloe-Azaide, and aims to highlight women in couture wandering Al Fahidi. It combines ideas of tradition, culture, avant-garde fashion, street style and patterns in an explosion of colours.
A 20-metre mural
This 20-metre artwork is being displayed at Al Seef, and formed part of an extension of the Sikka Art and Design Festival. It was created originally at Expo 2020 Dubai’s Al Forsan Park, with participation from the New Zealand Pavilion, and will stay in Al Seef before being shipped back to New Zealand after Ramadan.
It was part of a street art activation presented by the pavilion’s Entertainment and Culture Sector, under the theme of Care for People and Place.
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The five pillars of Islam
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The five pillars of Islam
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- Premier League-standard football pitch
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- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
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- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
The years Ramadan fell in May
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Company profile
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Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
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- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
