Browsing 'exhibition' News

bydohanews
Life
bydohanews
Life

National Day celebrations at Katara Cultural Village

Date and Venue: December 13 – 19 from 04:00 pm – 10:00 pm at Katara Cultural Village

Entry Free

Experience the sense of patriotism on National Day celebrations at Katara Cultural Village that is offering exciting array of cultural activities and artistic performances. The organisers promise first-of-its-kind events and activities, including performances by paratroopers, theatrical play by Qatari youth,  a mosaic painting of Emir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, entertainment’ train, dancing’ fountain, stunning decorations and lots more.

Don’t miss the opportunity to be a part of fun-filled gathering in ongoing celebrations.

Qatar National Day celebrations at The Pearl-Qatar

Date and Venue: December 15 to 18. Daily from 06:00 pm onwards at 6 & 7 La Croisette, Porto Arabia, The Pearl

Entry Free

Qatar’s National day celebrations are in full swing with various activities lined up for the next few days. The Pearl is decorated in glitter and glory, displaying cultural symbols. Various recreation and social activities are planned attracting large number of visitors.

The four-day event will include Arabic-style tents serving dates and traditional coffee, dedicated spaces  for children to play and colour their faces with National Day-inspired designs, Mascots portraying traditional cartoon characters, falcons on display, Folkloric ‘Arda’ performances and henna drawing.  This is one of the most exciting times of the year and marks the beginning of celebrations that will last till the year end.

Driven by German Design Exhibition

Date and Venue: October 13 – 14 January 2018. Daily from 09:00am to 07:00pm, except Fridays – 01:30pm to 07:00 pm at Qatar Museums Gallery, Al Riwaq

 Entry free

Driven by German Design opened in October as part of the Qatar-German year of Culture, 2017. The exhibition is organised by Qatar Museums, German Embassy in Doha and the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region.

The vast exhibition space was curated by renowned museum director, Prof. Dr. Martin Roth. It features marvellous sights of numerous design objects loaned from some of Germany’s most significant cultural institutions, such as the Vitra Design Museum, Neue Sammlung, Porsche Museum and Museum für Angewandte Kunst Frankfurt.

The exhibition highlights development of German designs since 1950, from diverse fields, including product and graphic design, architecture, furniture, fashion and automotive design, including some of the rare sight objects like iPhones, cameras and most iconic cars ever to have been designed. Porsche 911 Turbo, Volkswagen Golf and Käfer as a major attraction.

‘Design laboratory’ erases the difference between abstract and real, featuring interactive technologies and prototypes making victor’s experience all the more entertaining.

Exploring Expression by Fahad Al Obaidly

Date and Venue: December 16  – 16 January 2018. Daily from 09:00 am – 07:00 pm at W Doha Hotel & Residences

Entry Free

Abstract is an immediate relief from the realities we experience. It brings on a whole new world with no pre-defined discourse. If you are looking for such a line of flight, this may be your immediate choice. Set free your imagination with awakening vibrancy of colours by Fahad Al Obaidly, an artist who believes that art is a way to free world. He has put in efforts to underline ‘identity crises’ in his work. His art brings about his urge to portray the instability individuals face in the contemporary globalised arena that has taken away the sense of true self, alienating them even in a crowd.

Qatar Superstock 600 at Losail Circuit Sports Club

Date and Venue: December 15 – 16. From 09:00 am onwards at Losail Circuit Sports Club

Entry Free (for spectators)

If you are looking to increase the torque of your regular life, Qatar SuperStock 600 (QSTK600) is a perfect stop. The road racing championship organized by Qatar Motor Motorcycle Federation and Losail Circuit Sports Club is an exciting championship in which participants will use the best of their racing skills using one-make bike that will be used for the rest of the season. It will be a stocked 600cc bike.

This year, Qatar Superstock 600 Championship will have a new class QSTK Trophy that will be exclusively open to riders who achieve their best lap time of 2.09 minutes at the Losail International Circuit with a 600cc bike, or 2.07 minutes with a 1000cc bike, in five rounds. Join the thrill.

Car Stunt Show at Aspire Zone

Date and Venue: December 8 – 6 January.  Daily three shows: 2:30 pm, 5:30 pm and 7:30 pm at the Aspire Zone, New Driving School Park.

Entry Fee: 100 QAR per person and children under 5 have free entry

This is a walk-in event showcasing thrilling stunts by experts and participants. If you are looking for an exciting show of technique and speed producing stimulating visions of man and machine, this is the place to be at.

Live Performance by Allan Pineda Lindo / Apl De Ap

 

Date and Venue: December 15 – 16 from 08:00 pm – 02:00 am at The St. Regis, Doha

Entry Fee: Regular -250 QAR and VIP -500 QAR

Performance by Allan Pineda Lindo, professionally known as Apl De Ap, is a Filipino-American musician, rapper, singer, and record producer. He is best known as a member of the Grammy Award-winning hip hop group, The Black Eyed Peas.

Join the night to Hip and Hop on energetic tunes of world class DJ and striking performance by the Filipino- American singer.

 

 

byLesley Walker
Culture
byLesley Walker
Culture
Treasures of China Exhibition
Treasures of China exhibition
Treasures of China exhibition
Treasures of China exhibition
Treasures of China Exhibition
Treasures of China Exhibition
Treasures of China Exhibition
Treasures of China Exhibition

All photos by Reem Saad

A new art exhibit that includes 2,000-year old pieces from China’s renowned Terracotta Army opens to the public today at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA).

The four warriors and horse date back to the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) and are being shown in the Middle East for the first time as part of a Treasures of China exhibition.

Treasures of China Exhibition

Reem Saad / Doha News

Treasures of China Exhibition

The entire exhibit spans 5,000 years of Chinese history and features 116 pieces of bronze, pottery, gold, silver, jade and enamelware borrowed from five museums in China.

It is one of a number of events organized as part of the ongoing Qatar-China Year of Culture.

Protection

Visitors to the MIA will be taken on a three-part journey, starting with the Neolithic period, in the section The birth of civilization, ceremonies and kingdoms.

This features around a dozen pieces of bronze ware such as jugs and other drinking vessels, many of which are intricately engraved with animal figures and which date back 3,000 years.

They are on loan from the Palace Museum Collection in Beijing.

The warriors – two of which are outside of China for the first time – are at the heart of the second section, Splendid unification, prosperity and the Silk Road.

The largest of the figures is a general, who stands at the center of the exhibit. His high-shaped headgear, imposing stature and armor denote his rank in the army.

Treasures of China Exhibition

Reem Saad / Doha News

Treasures of China Exhibition

He is flanked by two other standing warriors, who have traveled outside of Qatar for the first time.

There is also a horse and a kneeling archer figure.

The sculptures are among thousands of pieces that once furnished the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, China’s first emperor, in the belief that they would protect him in the afterlife.

The pieces lay undiscovered for thousands of years until some farmers unearthed them in 1974.

So far, at least 8,000 pieces have been uncovered across three pits – the largest of which is equivalent to 50 basketball courts in size – next to the emperor’s mausoleum near Xi’an in central China.

Pit 1 of the warriors near Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum

Wikipedia

Pit 1 of the warriors near Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum

The entire collection includes soldiers of varying ranks, chariots and horses.

Each piece was painstakingly modeled on real people or animals to portray life-like size, facial expressions, clothing, gestures and hairstyles. No two pieces are the same.

When first made, they would have been vividly painted in bright colors.

However, they have now faded to a reddish-brown terracotta color, said Xu He, curator of Art Exhibitions China, which put together the MIA collection.

Islamic influences

Throughout the exhibition, there are a number of pieces that reflect the connection between the Middle East, Islamic art and Chinese craftsmanship.

Treasures of China Exhibition

Reem Saad / Doha News

Treasures of China Exhibition

For example, a large, tri-colored pottery camel from the Tang dynasy (618-907 CE) portrays the means of land travel for those in the early days of the Silk Road.

The third and final section Porcelain, Imperial China and the Royal Arts features artifacts up to the early 20th Century.

It includes a plate and a ceramic box with lid from the Ming dynasty (1368 – 1684 CE) which are adorned with blue-painted Arabic calligraphy.

Treasures of China Exhibition

Reem Saad

Treasures of China Exhibition

Other highlights include more contemporary pieces from the Qing dynasty up to the early 20th Century such as a detailed, enameled incense burner and an engraved jade brush pot.

The final item in the exhibition is a yellow plate that would have been used by an Empress for birthday celebrations, Xu said.

It features circle patterns detailed in gold to bring the user long-life, while also including a repeated bat pattern.

“The Chinese pronunciation of bat is the same as that for the word which means ‘luck,’ so it was designed to bring good fortune for the user,” Xu added.

Cultural exchange

Launching the exhibition yesterday, Mansoor bin Ebrahim Al-Mahmood, acting CEO at Qatar Museums, said in a statement:

“Whilst Qatar and China are two countries that may be far apart, they have more in common than visitors realize, including shared values based on education, hospitality and cultural curiosity, strong economic ties and positive diplomatic relations that date back to the 1980s.”

Later in the year, a number of educational events will be held in conjunction with the latest MIA exhibition.

Treasures of China Exhibition

Reem Saad / Doha News

Treasures of China Exhibition

This will include a four-part workshop, where children can make clay sculptures inspired by the exhibition and the warriors, QM said.

The MIA exhibition follows the success of two previous events held earlier this year to mark the year of culture – Silks from the Silk Road, which was held at Katara and What about the Art? which was at Al Riwaq.

Treasures of China is on display at MIA’s special exhibitions gallery on the ground floor and is free to enter. It runs until Jan. 7, 2017.

Thoughts?

byLesley Walker
Business Culture
byLesley Walker
Business Culture
Supporters during Qatar-China football match - Oct. 2015

Ray Toh

Supporters during Qatar-China football match – Oct. 2015

An exhibition featuring the work of more than a dozen Chinese contemporary artists and a collection of 100 pieces of silk collected over centuries will be two of the main events headlining the upcoming Year of Culture between Qatar and China, Qatar Museums (QM) has said.

In addition to the two main exhibitions, Qatar will also host an open-air Chinese festival and Chinese movie week as part of its line-up of activities through 2016. A full line-up will be announced soon, QM said.

China is Qatar’s fifth and latest partner for the cultural tie-up, which QM launched in 2012 with Japan as the inaugural country. The UK and Brazil have also served as partners, and this year Turkey was part of the program, which is designed to build and strengthen cultural ties between Qatar residents and other countries.

This is done through art exhibitions, educational programs and cultural exchanges throughout the year.

Qatar-China relations

EmergingEquity.org

Qatar-China relations

The idea of the tie-up was discussed during the Emir’s visit to China last November, and made official in April by Qatar’s Minister of Culture, Arts and Heritage, Dr. Hamad bin Abdulaziz Al Kuwari, when he met with the Asian country’s Cultural Minister Luo Shugang in Beijing.

During the meeting, Al Kuwari expressed his appreciation for the rich culture of China and the depth of the historical relations between Arabs and the Chinese.

In a statement on its website at the time of the announcement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said:

“China supports the holding of China-Qatar Cultural Year in 2016 to push forward bilateral people-to-people and cultural exchanges…Qatar will work with China to well organize activities of the Qatar-China Cultural Year in 2016 and deepen friendship between the two peoples.”

The exhibitions

One of the highlights of the year’s events will be the exhibition What About the Art? Contemporary Art from China, which will include works by 15 contemporary Chinese artists and will be curated by internationally acclaimed New York-based Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang.

Gunpowder exhibit at Mathaf by Cai Guo Qiang

Alexander Cheek/Flickr

Gunpowder exhibit at Mathaf by Cai Guo Qiang

After his solo exhibition at Mathaf in 2011, Cai returns to Qatar as a curator to present the exhibition which features the artists and collectives working in a variety of media.

Located in Al Riwaq gallery, near the Museum of Islamic Art, the exhibition is set to open in Spring 2016.

Also set to open in Spring at the QM gallery in Katara is the exhibition Silks from the Silk Road, which includes 100 pieces of silk work made from ancient to modern times and aims to chart the history of silk and its cultural significance over thousands of years, QM said.

Pearls exhibition in Sao Paulo

Qatar Museums

Pearls exhibition in Sao Paulo

Meanwhile, QM’s Pearls exhibition, which has previously traveled to London, Sao Paulo and Istanbul during past years of culture, is set to open in Beijing during next year.

Previous versions of the exhibition have featured jewelry made by the natural pearls of the Arabian Gulf (from 200 AD until around 1930) and highlights have included pearls and jewelry by Cartier, Elizabeth Taylor’s natural pearl earrings by Bulgari, 10 royal tiaras from European monarchies, tribal jewelry made with pearls from Tibet, and Chinese freshwater pearls.

In a statement, Al Kuwari said:

“Qatar and China have strong cultural identities and we are each proud of our history, heritage and traditions. Building on our shared values and outlook will help build closer cooperation and partnership between us in ways that extend beyond culture…

We look forward to celebrating our growing relationship with widespread participation and engagement in both countries in the coming year.”

QM official Mohammed Al Othman added the partnership “will further demonstrate that Qatar is a cultural destination which is open to the world.”

Economic ties

The year of culture aims to forge closer economic as well as cultural links between states and in recent years, Qatar and China have strengthened their political and business tie-ups.

A trade show booth belonging to missile manufacturer China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corp.

CPMIEC

A trade show booth belonging to missile manufacturer China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corp.

In May 2014 for example, China replaced the US as Qatar’s top exporter in terms of origin country for total imports into Qatar during the month.

Meanwhile, trade between the two countries has grown in the last few years from $8.5 billion in 2012 to $10 billion in 2013, mostly on the strength of energy exports – namely natural gas – from Qatar, as well as Chinese shipments of electronics and building materials to the Gulf.

In terms of natural gas, Qatar Petroleum signed a deal in 2010 with PetroChina and Shell to explore and produce an 8,100-square-kilometer gas field near Ras Laffan.

A year later, the three companies entered into an agreement to build a petrochemicals and refining complex in Zhejiang province in east China.

Speaking about the line-up of events for the year ahead, China’s ambassador to Qatar Li Chen said in a statement:

“China-Qatar 2016 Year of Culture is a grand celebration of culture and arts, reflecting the close relationship and spirit of collaboration between our countries, as envisioned by our leaders. Our relationship with Qatar is of huge significance to us and we are proud to be hosting the 2016 Year of Culture. We share much in common, including the importance we attach to our histories, traditions and cultures, particularly as our countries grow and develop.”

Thoughts?