The Ras Al Khaimah Fine Arts Festival (RAKFAF) celebrate its 10th edition in 2022, under the theme ‘The Journey’, a celebration of the Festival’s first decade and the first 50 years of the United Arab Emirates. Artists will share their interpretations of what this theme means to them through the lens of ancestry, migration, national identity and personal growth.
The annual arts Festival, which was established under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, will open to the public on Friday, 4 February at 8:30pm and run until Thursday, 31 March, 2022, with all international standard Covid-19 safety guidelines firmly 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 its home for the past three years and standing as a critical bridge between Ras Al Khaimah’s cultural heritage and contemporary art scene. Once again, 2022 will see exciting satellite exhibition sites in some of the emirate’s most iconic locations: the public viewing deck of the UAE’s highest peak Jebel Jais and the Open Park on Al Marjan Island.
The free-to-attend outdoor exhibition of art, photography, and sculpture, presents a diverse collection of artworks from over 150 artists hailing from more than 45 countries. There will also be a vibrant program of film screenings, workshops, guided tours, and other events held across the Festival’s various locations.
RAKFAF seeks to support the social and cultural development of Ras Al Khaimah and the UAE by nurturing emerging talent. This year’s Festival will showcase the work of more than 150 local, regional, and international artists.
The Cultural Weekend is set on the last week of February. Highlighting and celebrating the UAE’s diversity and rich culture, this weekend includes Ghawa (Arabic Coffee) making, traditional storytelling, camel rides, and an immersive local theatre performance from the talented members of the National Theatre of Ras Al Khaimah.
Another Festival highlight is the Pet Friendly Weekend on the 2nd week of February. Businesses and organizations from across the UAE will travel to Al Jazirah Al Hamra to provide workshops for pet lovers, pet centred events, and stalls including pet yoga, paw print moulding, portraiture drawing and pet adoption from Ras Al Khaimah Animal Welfare Center (RAKAWC).
A virtual tour of the Festival is available online to make the Festival accessible to those not able to travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year’s Festival will once again use Fynd.art, a digital companion for the exhibition. The innovative and easy to use web application with image recognition and object detection will allow visitors to receive contactless artwork and exhibitor information through their smartphone while viewing the exhibition, and without a download or registration.
Representing Kuwait in this year’s festival are photogtapher Esa Al Sarraf and artist Yaqoub Yousef.
“It has been an absolute honor once again, to have two of my Artists chosen for this year’s RAKFAF 2022. Despite it being yet another challenging year with the never ending global pandemic, art and creativity in the region has thankfully not been impacted. As you are well aware, the talent in Kuwait is intense, and highlighting this in the region and beyond is something I will never tire of. From photographers to artists, we as a country should never stop helping that talent to grow and develop. Additionally, another country I have been exploring this year is Oman, they too have endless talents when it comes to the Art Scene and I cannot wait to have some of this talented group join us at RAKFAF2023. Up-and-coming photographer Esa Al Sarraf who was selected is a Kuwaiti Student currently in Colorado but he has an amazing eye for capturing breathtaking images. Having known Esa since a young age, it makes me so proud that the jury chose his work out of hundreds of submissions. Such a privilege for the festival to exhibit the work of Yaqoub Yousef of whom I am a huge fan of. Not only is he the head of the Department of Art Education in Kuwait, but I classify him as one of the county’s most talented artists.”
Tara Sillery, PR Passion artist representative
The 10th edition of the Ras Al Khaimah Fine Arts Festival is organized by the Al Qasimi Foundation, presented by Marjan, and supported by additional local partners including Stevin Rock LLC, Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone (RAKEZ), RAK Ports, RAK Tourism Development Authority, RAK Hospitality Holding, RAK Transport Authority and Vox Cinemas.
You can view Esa Al Sarraf’s photography by following @esaj.photography on Instagram or Yaqoub Yousef’s art by following @theking80 on Instagram. To attend any of the workshops, activities, tours, or film screenings, reservations should be made directly by visiting rakfinearts.ae. The Festival is open during the day Tuesday to Thursday 8am – 6pm and until 10pm Friday to Sunday, with extensive social distancing in place. Please note that workshops, tours, and screenings will have limited capacity, adhering to all safety guidelines.
