Qatar Museums to Add More Than 40 Pieces of Public Art
As a part of Qatar Creates, the yearly national cultural initiative that collects, advertises, and honours the variety of creative pursuits in Qatar, In Doha and around the country, renowned Qatari, regional, and international artists will be featured in a programme of new public artworks that Qatar Museums (QM) has commissioned. In the upcoming weeks, Qatar's public spaces will be transformed into a massive outdoor art museum experience with more than 100 public artworks, which will be on display for locals and the 1.5 million visitors who are anticipated to travel to Doha for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
An important turning point for Qatar's public art initiative, according to H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairperson of Qatar Museums, is the inclusion of 40 new, significant works of public art this fall. One of our most visible examples of cross-cultural interchange is public art, where we display creations from creators of many backgrounds and nationalities. Public art is present to make your experience distinctive, from the arrivals at the best airport in the world, Hamad International Airport, to every neighbourhood in our country. These pieces range in size and form and cover a wide range of subjects, but they all advance our objective to make art more accessible, involve our audiences, honour our heritage, and respect the cultures of all people.
In Qatar's public art programme, Qatar Museums is collaborating with a number of organisations in the city, such as the Supreme Committee of Delivery and Legacy, the Public Works Authority (Ashghal), and the Hamad International Airport, to set up artworks in a range of important trafficked and unexpected public spaces that are intended to surprise and delight onlookers, such as parks, shopping areas, educational and athletic facilities, the Hamad International Airport, and Q-Rail stations.
"Doha is a bustling destination and adding more than 40 new public art pieces will further turn the city into a dynamic urban canvas that serves to inspire dialogues and give sources of inspiration for everybody," said Abdulrahman Ahmed Al-Ishaq, Director of Public Art at Qatar Museums. More than anything else, the public art programme of Qatar Museums serves as a reminder that art is everywhere, not only in galleries and museums, and may be admired and embraced whether one is travelling to work, school, the desert, or the beach.
Adel Abidin, Ahmed Al Bahrani, Shouq Al-Mana, Shua'a Al Muftah, Salman Al-Malek, Monira al Qadiri, Faraj Daham, Simone Fattal, and other artists from Qatar and the MENA area will exhibit their works as part of the public art programme.
Recent notable works contain Richard Serra’s 7 at MIA Park and East/West-West/East in Zekreet, Tom Claassen’s Falcon (2021) at Hamad International Airport, A Blessing in Disguise by Ghada Al Khater at the Fire Station, Bruce Nauman’s Untitled (Trench, Shafts, Pit, Tunnel and Chamber) at M7, Flag of Glory by Ahmed Al Bahrani at the National Museum of Qatar, Untitled (Lamp/Bear) by Urs Fischer at Hamad International Airport, Gandhi’s Three Monkeys by Subodh Gupta at Katara Cultural Village, Maman by Louise Bourgeois at the Qatar National Convention Centre, The Miraculous Journey by Damien Hirst at Sidra Medical Centre, Bench by Saloua Raouda Choucair at MIA Park, Flying Man by Dia al-Azzawi at Hamad International Airport, and many others.
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