We’re ready to welcome some good news for a change, and escape into a world of art with the upcoming 2021 Ras Al Khaimah Fine Arts Festival.
Running from the 6th of this month to the 3rd of April with the theme of Hope, the Festival helps launch the UAE’s 2021 arts calendar, presents a stunning outdoor exhibition of local, regional, and international talents alongside a vibrant program of specially adapted indoor and outdoor film screenings, innovative workshops and tours, as well as new collaborations with Art Dubai and The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi.
With the 2021 edition planned in adherence to the strictest COVID-19 guidelines, the festival is established under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, and will open to the public on Saturday, 6 February and run until Saturday, 3 April, 2021, with all international standard Covid-19 safety guidelines in place.
The historic Ras Al Khaimah pearling village of Al Jazirah Al Hamra will once again provide the central backdrop for the Festival, having been the Festival’s home for the past two years and standing as a critical bridge between Ras Al Khaimah’s cultural heritage and contemporary art scene.
However, this year’s Festival will also see two new exciting mini-exhibition sites within the Emirate: the public viewing deck of the UAE’s highest peak Jebel Jais and the Open Park on Al Marjan Island.
With the theme of Hope – a theme that reflects the re-opening of the arts following the past year’s closures – the outdoor exhibition of art, photography, and sculpture, set within the Heritage Village and now at Jebel Jais and Al Marjan, will present more than 130 artworks by a diverse mix of artists from some 49 countries. There will also be a vibrant program of film screenings, workshops, guided tours, and other events held across the Festival’s various locations.
Artworks and programming are curated around the theme of Hope. In the year of the UAE’s 50th anniversary, the Festival is looking to the past and exploring the future through the lens of contemporary art at a time when hope is central to our daily lives.
Whether responding to the theme by considering human connection, the environment, or the current pandemic, each work and activity explores where hope is found, where it is built, and how it is shared. In a rapidly changing world of new technologies, urbanization, climate change, and COVID-19, the Festival is asking the critical question, how can hope inspire art, and art inspire hope?
Works by local UAE names such as Azza Al Nuaimi, Nuwair Al Hejari, Amani Al Mansoori, Maryam Al Mansoori, Faisal Al Rais, Khalid Al Bloshi, Nawal Al Nuaimi, Saeed Al Emadi, Maitha Al Ali, Abeer Al Rasbi, and Abdullah Khouri will be exhibited alongside the notable GCC talents of Awatif Al Safwan, Gheed Ashor and Om Kaithoom Al Alawi from Saudi Arabia, Esraa Al Enzi and Lamia Ghareeb from Kuwait, Bahrain’s Perryhan Elashmawi, and Oman’s Abullah Al Blooshi.
Speaking to us on Kuwait’s participation in the festival is Tara Sillery of PR Passion, who stated, “Kuwait holds a very special place in my heart and ensuring talented artists and suchlike get the recognition they deserve is a huge passion of mine. The country is blessed with many artists, designers and poets to name but a few. Unfortunately due to the global pandemic this year, the executive decision was taken to downsize the number of participating artists (due to travel restrictions and adherence to safety measures). This, in alignment with the 2021 Theme of “HOPE”, gives me the confidence that those who focused on their inner talents during the pandemic will have outstanding and emotional work to showcase for the 2022 Festival. I have always encouraged those I speak to throughout the year that they should never lose hope and just because it has been a hard year, focus on what amazing work has been produced throughout these difficult times. I cannot wait to discover and meet more amazing artists during the forthcoming year, not only in Kuwait, but globally!”
Also commenting on the Kuwaiti artist participation at the festival is Suqrat Bin Bisher – Director of the RAK Fine Arts Festival, who told bazaar,
“It is a very special honour for us at the festival and Al Qasimi Foundation to build special relationships with our much loved neighbours in Kuwait. For many years we have encouraged young and upcoming artists to participate in our festival, and each year we are blown away by the talented submissions we receive. We look forward to building our relationship year by year and are fully confident that in 2022 more of Kuwaiti stars will shine at our festival. Kuwait is blessed to have a strong Irish woman such as Tara Sillery to push and promote Kuwaiti art as well as International Artists for our festival each year. We look forward to welcoming more regional and international talent during the forthcoming years.”
From the wider MENA region, artists from Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Morocco, Algeria, Turkey, and Iran will be represented. Egyptian artist Mohamed Husain has been a professional artist for over 15 years and his work One with Burqa inspires hope through the leadership of women.
It illuminates the path for young people in the UAE, honoring the role of Emirati women in maintaining the traditions and heritage of the nation while looking towards the future and modernity. The work of several artists from Africa, Asia, and Oceania will feature from countries such as India, Pakistan, Sudan, Australia, Philippines, South Korea, and China, in addition to names from Europe and the United States.
For more information on the Festival, please visit www.rakfinearts.ae or follow on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. RAKFAF is free to the public.
