Qatar Week 2025

This panel brings together art history faculty from VCUarts Richmond and VCUarts Qatar to discuss themes from the upcoming 11th Hamad bin Khalifa Symposium on Islamic Art (Islam and Visual Culture in Contemporary Asia, VCUarts Qatar, November 8–10, 2025). Led by Symposium co-chairs Hala Auji (VCUarts) and Radha Dalal (VCUarts Qatar), the conversation highlights cross-campus collaborations and research shaping the symposium’s theme. They will be joined by Michelle Yee (VCUarts) and Monica Merlin (VCUarts Qatar, via Zoom), this year’s Symposium advisors.

October 13, 2025
10 a.m. – 12 p.m. (EDT)
The program will start at 10:30 a.m. (EDT)

ICA

Open to the Public

Far from being just a set of tools, digital fabrication is an emergent methodology—drifting across disciplines, materials, and modes of making. Digital Drift explores how contemporary art and design are reshaped when computation meets craft.

At its core, digital fabrication fosters an iterative rhythm of making and remaking, where prototypes are steps in a process of discovery. Materials, too, act as collaborators—responding to digital instructions with resistance, fragility, or surprise. This reciprocity between tool and matter extends the language of design.

The projects in Digital Drift merge hand and machine, dissolving old binaries between digital and manual. Faculty, students, and alumni contribute works that frame digital fabrication as a shared space of inquiry, collaboration, and possibility.

Organized by The Gallery and Digital Design + Fabrication at VCUarts Qatar, with The Anderson and VCUarts Richmond.

View contributors to this exhibition here.

October 13, 2025
5 – 6 p.m. (EDT)

The Anderson

Open to the Public

The exhibition will remain available for viewing until November 1, 2025.

As part of Qatar Week celebrations, this annual reception will bring together program participants, Virginia Commonwealth University leadership, donors, and distinguished guests for an evening of connection and exchange at the Scott House. 

The program will begin with opening remarks from VCU President Michael Rao, followed by addresses from the Deans of VCUarts Richmond and VCUarts Qatar. The theme of this year’s Qatar Week Reception is a special feature on VCUarts Qatar’s international engagement initiatives throughout the past academic year.

The reception follows the opening of the exhibition ‘Digital Drift’ at The Anderson.

By invitation only.

The series of talks will feature three accomplished graduates of VCU and VCUarts Qatar – Michael Walker (Senior Product Designer, Amazon), Noha Olivia Fahmy (Head of Architecture & Merchandising, LVMH Fragrance Brands), and Fatma Abdel Aziz (Senior Consultant, Barker Langham).

Each speaker will share their professional journey, highlighting the pivotal role their education at VCUarts Qatar played in shaping their creative and strategic thinking. From technology and luxury retail to cultural consultancy, the talks will demonstrate how design principles continue to inform diverse global industries and careers.

By sharing their challenges, breakthroughs, and career milestones, each speaker will illuminate the broader impact of design education beyond traditional creative fields, while also reflecting the strength of Qatar’s investment in talent, innovation, and cross-cultural exchange.

The event will be followed by lunch.

October 14, 2025
12 – 1 p.m. (EDT)

The Anderson

Open to the Public

Turn your digital designs into reality!

Join us for this hands-on digital fabrication workshop, where you’ll transform a rendered 3D model into a physical object. Using slicing software and advanced color mapping techniques, you’ll prepare your design for laser cutting, then assemble the cut pieces into a fully realized 3D form.

Bring your own 3D model (STL or OBJ) or work with one provided. Computers and all materials will be available—you just need to bring your creativity.

The workshop is led by Shankar Padmanabhan (VCUarts Qatar Head of Digital Design + Fabrication) and Chris Mahonski (Digital Fabrication Technician, VCUarts).

October 15, 2025
9 a.m. – 12 p.m. (EDT)

Murry N. DePillars Building

Open to all SOTA students. 

Limited seats – registration required.

The Creative Research Pecha Kucha returns for Qatar Week 2025, bringing together faculty from VCUarts Richmond and VCUarts Qatar to showcase the breadth of creative inquiry across our two campuses.

This lively event highlights the meaningful research and projects developed within the School of the Arts, spanning diverse domains and disciplines. Faculty will share forthcoming initiatives, recently completed works, and long-term research objectives in the fast-paced Pecha Kucha format: 20 slides, 20 seconds per slide, 6 minutes and 40 seconds per presentation.

The result is a dynamic afternoon of ideas, connections, and cross-campus dialogue that celebrates the innovation and scholarship driving both campuses.

VCUarts Qatar presentations:

• Cherif Amor, Ph.D.
• Levi Hammett
• Nathan Ross Davis
• Simone Carena

VCUarts Richmond presentations:

• Kate Sicchio, Ph.D.
• Luiza Dale
• Michael Royce
• Roberto Ventura, Tim Hamnett & Kristin Carleton

October 15, 2025
2 – 5 p.m. (EDT)

ICA

Open to the Public