By Raynald C Rivera
Cultural Village foundation - Katara — reaffirms its vital role as a melting pot of culture and the arts launching several exhibitions representing various cultures.
Katara provides an eclectic mix of expos for art lovers in Doha opening four exhibitions on Sunday including “Georgian Living Heritage”, “Urban Weavings”, ‘My identity 3” and “Burst of Colours.”
Organised by Georgian Arts and Culture Center (GACC), the “Georgian Living Heritage” exhibition introduces Georgian culture to Qatar with a fusion of historical and contemporary objects on show.
“You see here the works of the best of the best artists we brought from Georgia to exhibit here. We brought objects in textile, wood, clay, gold and other media that depict Georgian tradition,” said Georgian Ambassador Ekaterine Meiering-Mikadze.
Divided into historical and contemporary, the exhibition has among its major highlights replicas of archaeological artefacts and contemporary artworks inspired by Georgian history.
“We tried to put the historical part of Georgia and move to contemporary part. In the historical part we see the map of archaeological findings, all before Christ. We took copies of the original artefacts that are kept in the main museum in Georgia,” said GACC Founder and President Maka Dvalishvili, adding the expo serves as a bridge between past and present.
Georgian Arts and Culture Center works for culture has among its functions undertaking restoration projects, organising exhibitions and supporting artists.
The contemporary part features artefacts produced by contemporary artists but most of them are based on historical motifs including ceramics, jewellery, tapestry, batik and paintings, added Dvalishvili.
Of particular interest to visitors are traditional dresses worn during the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, which nowadays are worn only during special occasions.
In addition to the objects, the exhibition also features Georgian music, documentary and multimedia providing visitors vivid outlook on Georgian art and culture.
“We try to make this exhibition more contemporary and understandable so we put video installations to make it alive,” said Dvalishvili.
The three-dimensional photographs of ancient objects draw the attention of viewers making the artefacts more appealing to discover.
Just across the exhibition is “Urban Weavings”, an exhibition presented by the Mexican Embassy featuring unique artworks by world renowned Mexican artist Paloma Torres.
The 40 pieces resemble breathtaking aerial landscapes and excavations combining gobelins, tapestries and felt sculptures produced in various workshops throughout Mexico, with recycled materials from production of prominent Mexican masters.
The works were done in the last two years inspired by photographs she took of Mexico City valley packed with constructions.
Through the exhibition, Torres conveys a powerful message on the ever expanding urban space which affects people’s way of life.
“We would have to be more mindful to take care of our urban space, to combat visual contamination, the noise, the traffic, everything that makes a difference for having either an open or a closed vision of the world. I specially pretend to retake the space that belongs to us and induce people to realize that we are all responsible for the public space,” she said.
Mexican Ambassador Francisco Niembro underscored the significance of culture in international relations.
“When we talk about the foundations of international relations, we always include culture as one of the pillars of diplomacy and this is because cultural exchanges promote a bigger knowledge of nations, a wider understanding of our present circumstances and a clearer perspective of our relations,” said the Ambassador.
Ambassador Niembro also expressed positive outlook on Mexico and Qatar relations with the recent visit to Mexico by the Emir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and the upcoming visit to Qatar of Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.
In the adjacent gallery, “My Identity 3” opened featuring 38 photographs taken around Qatar.
It chiefly features important elements and symbols of Qatari culture and heritage such as falconry, traditional games, fishing, dhow, pearl diving, the Al Zubarah Fort, camels, traditional jewellery, wood work and sadu, among others.
Ten abstract paintings by young Qatari artist Aisha Al Kaabi are found at the ‘Burst of Colours” retrospective at the Katara Art Studios.
Al Kaabi’s debut exhibition, the show displays a deep artistic sense revealed by the choice of colours in creating the acrylic paintings.
“To be surrounded by such impressive artwork, which is not only pleasing to the eye but also representative of the cultural exchange we champion here at Katara, offers a wonderful depiction of our ethos at the Cultural Village,” said Katara General Manager Dr Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti.
Lectures were organised as in parallel with the Mexican and Georgian exhibitions which run until the end of the month in Buildings 18 and 19 respectively.
The Peninsula
