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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251001
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251102
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20251001T084725Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251020T112847Z
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SUMMARY:تشكيل المستقبل | Shaping the Future - VCUarts Richmond x Qatar Exhibition Exchange
DESCRIPTION:Qatar Campus – Oct. 01–28\, 2025\nMachines of Loving Grace\nProject Space\, Saffron Hall\nFree – Open invitation \nRichmond Campus: Oct. 13–Nov. 1\, 2025\nQatar Week Exhibition 2025: Digital Drift\nThe Anderson\, Richmond\, Virginia\, USA\nFree – Open invitation \n  \n\n  \nAs part of the annual exhibition exchange between VCUarts’ Richmond and Qatar campuses\, تشكيل المستقبل | Shaping the Future showcases the advanced digital fabrication and design capabilities of the two schools\, highlighting the profound impact of these technologies on research\, innovation and learning.  \nTwo exhibitions will be presented concurrently: on the Qatar campus\, Machines of Loving Grace will showcase selected projects from VCUarts Richmond’s Digital Fabrication course\, taught by Chris Mahonski. The Richmond campus will present Digital Drift\, featuring projects selected by Digital Design + Fabrication Head Shankar Padmanabhan and Coordinator Hala Amer\, in collaboration with the VCUarts Qatar Gallery staff. For more information\, see the exhibition descriptions below. \n  \n\n  \nMachines of Loving Grace\nThe exhibition Machines of Loving Grace is inspired by Richard Brautigan’s 1967 poem “All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace\,” a work that offers a countercultural vision of the technological revolution which was then on the horizon. Brautigan’s tone hovers between utopian sincerity and ironic detachment—a tension that remains unresolved in our own anxious relationship with technology today. Many artists and designers working with digital fabrication echo this ambiguity: captivated by its seductive precision\, yet unsettled by its mechanical rigidity and the questions of agency and authorship it provokes. \nThe works in this exhibition reflect that spectrum. Some artists take advantage of digital tools for their supra-human accuracy\, while others treat digital formats as readymades or found objects. Digital processes become points of departure for experimentation\, folding back on themselves in material play and cultural commentary. For many of the artists\, this is a first engagement with digital fabrication\, bringing fresh perspectives to the process. The works are united by that freshness and an expansive sense of curiosity and exploration\, echoing Brautigan’s ambivalent vision of a future in which technology is a vehicle of both grace and control. \nThis exhibition is organized by Chris Mahonski and The Gallery at VCUarts Qatar\, in partnership with VCUarts Richmond. \nRichmond team \nChris Mahonski – Digital Fabrication Technician\, Sculpture + Extended Media \nQatar team  \nDina AlKhateeb – Associate Curator of Campus Projects \nShankar Padmanabhan – Head of Digital Design + Fabrication \nChase Westfall – Head of Gallery \nSyed Ahmed – Gallery Assistant \n\n\nDigital Drift\nFar from being a set of tools\, digital fabrication is an emergent methodology in motion—a drift across disciplines\, materials\, and modes of making. The works in Digital Drift reveal how contemporary art and design practices are reshaped when computation meets craft. \nAt its core\, digital fabrication affords an iterative rhythm of making and remaking\, where prototypes are not endpoints but steps in a process of discovery. This capacity for rapid experimentation enables forms and ideas to evolve in real time\, pushing projects beyond static design solutions toward open-ended inquiries. \nEqually\, material agency becomes central. In these works\, materials are not passive substrates but active collaborators\, responding to digital instructions with resistance\, fragility\, or unexpected adaptation. This reciprocity between tool and matter opens new aesthetic and structural possibilities that extend the language of design. \nMany of the projects in Digital Drift move between hand and machine\, merging the embodied knowledge of craft with the precision of algorithmic control. This hybridity dissolves old binaries—digital versus manual\, craft versus computation—and situates making as a negotiation between tradition and technology. \nFinally\, the exhibition reflects a culture of collaboration. Digital fabrication thrives in shared studios and shops where artists\, designers\, and researchers work alongside engineers and technologists. These cross-disciplinary exchanges create an ecosystem in which ideas circulate and methodologies shift\, underscoring the drift that defines contemporary practice. \nBy bringing together works by faculty\, students\, and alumni\, Digital Drift frames digital fabrication as a shared space of inquiry—where experimentation\, collaboration\, and material exploration open new possibilities for contemporary art and design. \nThis exhibition is organized by The Gallery and Digital Design + Fabrication at VCUarts Qatar\, in partnership with The Anderson and VCUarts Richmond. \nQatar team  \nMeriem Aiouna – Associate Curator of Special Projects \nHala Amer – Digital Design + Fabrication Coordinator \nShankar Padmanabhan – Head of Digital Design + Fabrication \nChase Westfall – Head of Gallery \nRichmond team \nSarah Irvin – Administrative Coordinator\, The Anderson \nChris Mahonski – Digital Fabrication Technician\, Sculpture + Extended Media
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/shaping-the-future/
CATEGORIES:The Gallery
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qatar.vcu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/VCUartsQatarWeek-80-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251026
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251205
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20250929T061510Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251020T091640Z
UID:10000719-1761436800-1764892799@qatar.vcu.edu
SUMMARY:paths of the wind weave shadows bare bones of a mat by Yee I-Lann
DESCRIPTION:Photo courtesy of the artist and Silverlens (Manila/New York) \n  \n\n\nRelated Events\n\nNov. 08\, 4:00 – 5:00 PM – Exhibition Reception\nNov. 08\, 5:00 – 6:30 PM – Artist Talk: Yee I-Lann will present the Keynote Address at the 2025 Hamad bin Khalifa Symposium on Islamic Art. The event is free\, but registration is required. \n\n  \n\n\nAbout the Exhibition\nThe Gallery at VCUarts Qatar is pleased to present\, in partnership with the Hamad bin Khalifa Symposium on Islamic Art\, paths of the wind weave shadows bare bones of a mat\, an exhibition by artist Yee I-Lann. \nIn her exhibition paths of the wind weave shadows bare bones of a mat\, artist Yee I-Lann challenges established grammars. The strained syntax of the exhibition’s title (borrowed from one of its featured works) stands in for the Malaysian artist’s larger project of testing conventions and applying pressure to encoded structures. The reader is pulled up by the absence of expected articles\, prepositions and punctuation. These absences interrupt subject hierarchy and temporal continuity\, making multiple\, malleable readings available simultaneously. Nouns and adjectives double as verbs. Verbs double as nouns. For Yee\, these kinds of generative disruptions are an essential part of the post-colonial effort. Rather than seeking to simply topple or invert structures of hegemonic power\, Yee works to redistribute that power and agency within a democratic assembly: to revert\, as she expresses it\, “the beaurocrat’s desk back into the communal mat” – like the traditional tikar mats which served as the literal and symbolic seat of egalitarian tribal governance in pre-colonial Malaysia.[1] \n…bare bones of a mat brings together four of Yee’s major bodies of work: TIKAR/MEJA\, Picturing Power\, Rasa Sayang\, and Tikar Reben. TIKAR/MEJA illustrates the reversion of power structures described above: For the series\, Yee collaborated with indigenous weavers from Bajau Sama Di Laut communities in Sabah\, Malaysia to create brightly colored tikar mats bearing the silhouettes of western-style tables. “A table on a mat can be rolled up\, ‘eaten’ by the mat\, like a stone covered by paper in a game of rock paper scissors\,” explains the artist. Picturing Power remixes archival photographs from Dutch-colonial Malaysia to subvert and un-fix the authority of colonial narratives\, and to examine the complexity and complicity  of photography’s role in the formation of Malaysian identity. For the Rasa Sayang works\, Yee edited donated images of hugs\, generating an alphabet from these gestures of embrace. The potency of these small acts of care is supercharged as each letterform is rendered in vibrating orange and blue. Begun in 2012\, this typeface would later provide a literal body language for articulating\, in poetic and cathartic terms\, the emotional arc of the COVID 19 pandemic\, asserting the necessity of human connection in times of alienation and division. Extending these themes\, in Tikar Reben a 63 meter tikar “ribbon” becomes a figurative bridge between neighboring coastal communities. The locally-woven mat provides a cultural and economic tie\, uniting peoples divided by legacies of nationalism and displacement. For Yee\, engagements like these provide “a way of thinking\, and rethinking\, about how we use and share space ­– the space of community (politics)\, the space of storytelling\, the space of cultural production and economics (art-making).”[3] \npaths of the wind weave shadows bare bones of a mat is curated by Meriem Aiouna and Chase Westfall.  \nSpecial thanks to Silverlens Galleries (New York\, Manila) and the Shane Akeroyd Collection.  \n  \n\n   \n[1] Yee I-Lann\, conversation with the author\, March 5\, 2025. \n[2]  Pauline Fan\, Rasa Sayang–A Sense of Loss and Love\, exhibition essay (Mind Set Art Center\, 2014). \n[3]  Yee I-Lann\, “Art Basel OVR: Portals 2021\,” Silverlens Galleries\, June 16–19\, 2021\,  https://www.silverlensgalleries.com/exhibitions/2021-06-16/art-basel-ovr-portals-2021. \n  \n\n\nArtist Biography\nYee I-Lann (b. 1971\, Kota Kinabalu\, Sabah\, Malaysian Borneo) is an artist whose interdisciplinary practice spans photomedia\, textiles\, installation\, filmmaking\, and community collaboration. Her work explores the entanglements of colonial histories\, local cosmologies\, and structures of power across the Southeast Asian region and its global connectivities. In recent years\, she has collaborated with Dusun and Bajau Sama Dilaut weavers in Sabah\, developing a mat-based practice in which the tikar functions as medium\, method\, and philosophy—often centering counter-narratives and histories from below. These works explore decolonial imagination\, collective making\, cultural resilience\, and the everyday as a site of critical engagement. Her art has been widely exhibited in museums and biennales across Asia\, Europe\, Australia\, and North America\, and is held in major international collections. Based in Kota Kinabalu\, Yee has served on the boards of FINAS and Forever Sabah\, and is co-founding partner of Kota-K Art Gallery. She describes herself as an “&”.
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/paths-of-the-wind-weave-shadows-bare-bones-of-a-mat-by-yee-i-lann/
LOCATION:THE GALLERY AT VCUARTS QATAR
CATEGORIES:The Gallery
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://qatar.vcu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/yee-i-lann-exhibition.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Qatar:20251117T173000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Qatar:20251117T200000
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20251117T044742Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251117T062927Z
UID:10000722-1763400600-1763409600@qatar.vcu.edu
SUMMARY:VC x VCUarts Qatar: Sudan Through Art - Filmmaking\, Resistance & Identity
DESCRIPTION:Presented by The Video Consortium\n\n\n\nAfter a year of powerful screenings and conversations\, the Video Consortium Doha Hub returns with a special evening dedicated to Sudanese filmmaking\, resilience\, and resistance. \nThrough a curated selection of short films\, we’ll explore how Sudanese artists\, filmmakers\, and journalists are using creative expression to respond to conflict\, preserve cultural identity\, and advocate for justice. From deeply personal stories of loss and memory to bold acts of artistic defiance\, these films reflect the strength and spirit of Sudan’s people in times of crisis. \nHosted in collaboration with TrueNorth Qatar and VCUarts Qatar\, this event will feature three acclaimed films followed by a panel discussion and audience Q&A with leading Sudanese voices shaping art and storytelling today. \n\n\nScreening Programme\n‘Kamala Ibrahim Ishag: States of Oneness’ (7 mins) by Suzannah Mirghani. \n‘States of Oneness’ celebrates pioneering Sudanese painter Kamala Ibrahim Ishag. Blending the earthly and the spiritual\, the film explores her six-decade career and her distinctive works that entwine human and plant forms to reflect on nature\, womanhood\, and the unseen rhythms of life. \nSuzannah Mirghani is a Sudanese-Russian filmmaker\, writer\, and researcher whose work explores themes of identity\, postcolonialism\, and gender in the Arab world. Known for her award-winning short Al-Sit\, Mirghani blends academic inquiry with visual storytelling\, amplifying underrepresented voices and centering nuanced portrayals of Sudanese and Arab womanhood in both documentary and fiction film. \n  \n‘El Maradh Ma Bektil / When It’s Time’ (16 mins) by Awad Hashim Karrar. \n‘When It’s Time’ documentary follows Awad Hashim Karrar on an emotional journey as he faces his father’s declining health and eventual passing\, capturing grief\, love\, and the quiet strength found in saying goodbye. \nAwad Hashim Karrar is an acclaimed Sudanese filmmaker whose work delves into themes of memory\, revolution\, and the reclamation of African identity through cinema. Drawing from Sudan’s complex histories and the lived experiences of its people\, Karrar’s films weave personal and collective memory into powerful visual narratives. His storytelling often explores the intersection of art and activism\, using film as a tool to document social movements\, challenge stereotypes\, and reimagine Africa’s place in global cinema. \n  \n‘Fleeing Sudan: Crossing the Channel to the UK’ (33 mins)\, an Al Jazeera Witness documentary\, by Camille Toulmé & Julien Goudichaud \nNearly 20 years after his brother died on the refugee trail\, Daba follows his path as conflict erupts in Sudan. Stuck in Calais’s “Jungle” after 200 failed crossings\, he clings to one mission: repatriate his brother’s body knowing there’s no way back. \nCamille Toulmé is a journalist and director\, whose favorite subjects revolve around migration issues and the Arab world. She mainly worked for the international broadcaster Arte for whom she has covered censorship in Egypt\, the first crossing of the Channel by exiles as well as the crisis of the pandemic. Gradually\, she moved towards a more documentary approach to subjects as with her awarded film about a young Syrian refugee\, called ‘Rawa’. \nJulien Goudichaud is a director. Correspondent in Africa for AFP\, Julien has made numerous documentaries around the world. Thus ‘Missionary in Mosul’ is a good example broadcasted on the French national channel\, France TV. In 2020\, he directed ‘Calais: Door of the Exodus’ for the international broadcaster Arte and his multi-awarded documentary ‘Confined Outside’ was shown in Clermont Ferrand\, Namur and 12 other festivals. \n\n\nPanel Discussion\nAfter the screening\, we will have an insightful discussion panel moderated by Eiman Mirghani\, award-winning Sudanese director and producer based in Qatar. \nThe panel will be featuring: \nAssil Diab: Sudanese visual artist\, graphic designer\, and graffiti pioneer\, and the first female graffiti artist from both Sudan and Qatar. A two-time TEDx speaker and VCUarts graduate\, she uses her “artivism” to honor stories of resilience and social change.  \nSuzannah Mirghani: Creator of ‘Kamala Ibrahim Ishag: States of Oneness’. \nSalma Abdalla: Sudanese creator\, researcher\, and founder of Andariya – a multilingual digital media and research platform dedicated to positive storytelling from Sudan and to the East and Horn of Africa region. Her work amplifies African voices through cultural programming\, storytelling\, and research across the region and its diaspora. \nAwad Hashim Karrar: Creator of ‘When It’s Time’. \n\n\n Schedule\n5:30 pm – Doors open \n6:00 pm – Film Screenings \n7:00 pm – Panel Discussion & Audience Q&A \n\n\nAdmission\nFree entry. But tickets must be reserved through the VC or VCUarts Qatar platform for entry. Please note that all attendees are required to present a government-issued ID at the entrance. \nPlease reserve tickets here. \nConvenient parking is available on campus\, with ECS North Parking near The Dome as an additional option. \n 
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/vc-x-vcuarts-qatar-sudan-through-art-filmmaking-resistance-identity/
LOCATION:Atrium\, VCUarts Qatar
CATEGORIES:Film Screening
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qatar.vcu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Fleeing-Sudan_Crossing-the-Channel-to-the-UK.jpeg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Qatar:20251124T130000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Qatar:20251124T150000
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20251117T050354Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251117T062716Z
UID:10000723-1763989200-1763996400@qatar.vcu.edu
SUMMARY:November 24: Films That Move You – The Art of Creating Stories with Impact
DESCRIPTION:Masterclass in the framework of the EU Delegation Short Film Festival\n\n\n\nThis masterclass explores how film can be a catalyst for empathy\, awareness\, and social change\, with a special focus on inclusive storytelling and the role of women in the industry. \nIn “Films That Move You\,” filmmakers Jamillah van der Hulst and Conrad Alleblas of JaJa Film Productions guide participants through the creative and practical journey of making socially impactful films. \nThe session includes: \n\nAn introduction to their work and the role of women within their company\, and their filmmaking approach\nThe creative process: script development\, shaping storylines\, working with sound and visuals\nThe production process: planning\, budgeting\, pitching\, and distribution\nTwo compelling case studies\nConcludes with a Q&A session\, inviting engagement and reflection\n\nSign up for the masterclass here. \n\n\nSpeaker bios\nJamillah van der Hulst \nGraduated in marketing from the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences\, Jamillah began her career in communications for international NGOs. In 2012\, she founded JaJa Film Productions and transitioned into filmmaking\, later discovering a passion for directing. Her first full-length documentary\, Fighting for Life (2018)\, won the Peace and Sport Documentary Prize at the SPORTEL Awards in Monaco. Jamillah’s work focuses on inspiring stories of individuals striving to make a meaningful impact. \nConrad Alleblas \nBefore co-founding JaJa Film Productions in 2012\, Conrad built a career in elite sports (speed skating and cycling) and later transitioned into sports and interim management. As a producer and cameraman\, he combines strong organisational and fundraising skills with a powerful visual style. He is involved in all stages of production and aims to deliver meaningful\, impactful storytelling.
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/films-that-move-you-the-art-of-creating-stories-with-impact/
LOCATION:Atrium\, VCUarts Qatar
CATEGORIES:Masterclass
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qatar.vcu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Festival1.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260125
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260308
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20260202T112059Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260204T101526Z
UID:10000725-1769299200-1772927999@qatar.vcu.edu
SUMMARY:Contemporary Art from Qatar: The Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani Collection
DESCRIPTION:This journey has not merely been about accumulating works but rather about experiencing and understanding the dynamic pulse of Qatari culture through its creative expressions.\n– H.E. Dr. Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani \n  \nVCUarts Qatar is proud to host the official book launch of Contemporary Art from Qatar: The Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani Collection (Skira Arte\, 2026) as part of Art Basel Qatar’s program.  \nSpanning three decades of collecting\, the book traces the evolution of Qatari art from traditional motifs rooted in heritage to contemporary practices shaped by global dialogue and rapid transformation. \nAccompanying the launch is VCUarts Qatar’s latest exhibition: نبض المكان | Pulse of Place: Selected Works from the Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani Collection\, featuring works by 11 Qatari artists and designers—all VCUarts Qatar alumni—included in the book as key voices shaping Qatar’s contemporary visual culture. \nWe look forward to welcoming you as we mark the enduring legacy of H.E. Dr. Abdulla — a pioneering champion of Qatar’s creative ambitions and cultural life. \n  \nThe exhibition curated by Dina Alkhateeb and Chase Westfall\, \nSpecial thanks to H.E. Sheikh Dr. Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani for sharing part of his collection and launching his book at VCUarts Qatar\, Sheikh Fahad bin Jabor Al Thani\, Anas Kutit and al markhiya gallery. \n  \nExhibition \nDate: Jan. 25–Mar. 7\, 2026\nDaily Timings: Sunday to Thursday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.\nLocation: The Gallery\, VCUarts Qatar \n  \n\n  \nArtist Bios\nAISHA AL-SOWAIDI\n B. 1983\nAisha Al-Sowaidi is a multidisciplinary designer based in Doha\, Qatar\, whose work reflects the intersection of tradition and modernity in Qatar’s evolving landscape. Drawing inspiration from cultural shifts\, her designs fuse past experiences with contemporary aesthetics\, creating objects that evoke nostalgia and familiarity. She earned her bachelor’s in graphic design and her master’s in design studies from VCUarts Qatar. Her work invites viewers to reflect on the connection between personal spaces and the changing world around them. \nAMEENA AL-BUAINAIN\n B. 1996\nAmeena Al-Buainain is a Qatari artist based in Doha\, known for painting and printmaking. Her work has been featured at Alhosh Gallery and The Gallery at VCUarts Qatar in 2020. Al-Buainain holds a bachelor’s degree in painting and printmaking (minor in art history) from VCUarts Qatar. Her practice reflects her commitment to exploring and expanding her artistic voice. \nBOUTHAYNA AL-MUFTAH\n B. 1987\nBouthayna Al-Muftah\, a Qatari multidisciplinary artist\, navigates painting\, printmaking\, and documentation. Her evolving practice has created immersive installations and dynamic performance pieces anchored in Qatar’s cultural heritage. Al-Muftah received her bachelor’s degree from VCUarts Qatar in 2009. She has designed the official FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 poster and exhibited internationally\, including M7\, Palais de Tokyo\, and Cosmoscow. \nFATMA AL-REMAIHI\n B. 1986\nFatma Al-Remaihi is a Qatari artist working in sketchbooking\, drawing\, and painting. She holds a master’s in studio art from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (2016) and a bachelor’s in graphic design from VCUarts Qatar (2010). Her work explores identity\, agency\, and the multiple roles she navigates in life. \nFATIMA MOHAMMED\n B. 1993\nFatima Mohammed is a contemporary Qatari artist working in mixed media\, printmaking\, and installation art. She graduated from VCUarts Qatar with a bachelor’s in painting and printmaking with a minor in art history (2016). Mohammed has participated in residencies at Fire Station Doha and ISCP New York\, with exhibitions locally and internationally. \nGHADA AL-KHATER\n B. 1989\nGhada Al-Khater is a Qatari multidisciplinary artist whose work blends art\, politics\, and social issues through cartoons\, illustrations\, and sculptures. She has exhibited at Ajyal Film Festival\, Doha Fire Station\, QM Gallery – Al Riwaq\, Art 29\, and internationally. She was an artist in residence at Cité Internationale des Arts\, Paris (2018)\, and received the Artist of the Year Award at the 2018 Grazia Editors’ Choice Awards. \nMANAR AL-MUFTAH\n B. 1985\nManar Al-Muftah is a Qatari visual artist and graphic designer whose work explores identity\, memory\, and Qatar’s cultural landscape. She earned a bachelor’s degree in graphic design from VCUarts Qatar (2007). Her work incorporates Arabic calligraphy through printmaking\, collage\, and mixed media\, with exhibitions locally and internationally. \nMARYAM AL-HOMAID\n B. 1988\nMaryam Al-Homaid is a Qatari interdisciplinary artist and Assistant Professor in the Graphic Design Department at VCUarts Qatar. She holds a bachelor’s in graphic design and a master’s in design studies from VCUarts Qatar. Her work examines Qatar’s social and economic transformation and has been exhibited internationally\, merging digital design with handcrafted textiles. \nRODA AL THANI\n B. 1991\nRoda Al Thani is a visual artist based in Doha\, Qatar\, and a producer at Qatar Museums\, leading the animated series Hazawy. She is a graphic design graduate from VCUarts Qatar and holds a master’s in visual narrative from the School of Visual Arts in New York. Her work engages audiences locally and globally. \nSHOUQ AL-MANA\n B. 1996\nShouq Al-Mana is a contemporary Qatari artist who holds a bachelor’s degree in painting and printmaking from VCUarts Qatar. Her work spans painting\, sculpture\, and installation\, exploring culture\, unity\, and identity. She has represented Qatar internationally with Generation Amazing Foundation projects\, public sculptures\, sustainability campaigns\, and conferences. \nAMNA AL-DARWISH\nAmna Al-Darwish is a Fine Art graduate from VCUarts Qatar\, specializing in Interior Design. She explores painting and contemporary art through various mediums\, capturing her personal connections to her surroundings\, and aims to inspire appreciation for the world. 
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/contemporary-art-from-qatar/
LOCATION:Atrium\, VCUarts Qatar
CATEGORIES:Book Launch,Exhibition,The Gallery
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qatar.vcu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Pulse-of-Place.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260201
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260204
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20260119T120351Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260127T140947Z
UID:10000726-1769904000-1770163199@qatar.vcu.edu
SUMMARY:ARTWEEK 2026: Community as Practice
DESCRIPTION:VCUarts Qatar presents the second edition of ARTWEEK 2026: Community as Practice\, hosted by the Painting and Printmaking (PAPR) Department on campus in Doha. \nRooted in collaboration\, care\, and openness\, ARTWEEK 2026 brings together students\, artists\, educators\, and cultural practitioners to explore how communities form through artistic practice\, and how learning unfolds within and beyond the studio. \nAcross three days\, the program features workshops\, lecture-performances\, panel discussions\, open studios\, and informal gatherings. Emphasizing the studio as both a site of making and exchange\, ARTWEEK foregrounds shared experience\, dialogue\, and collective rhythms of working together as central to contemporary art education. \nBuilding on collaborations between VCUarts Qatar and VCUarts Richmond\, and conversations sparked by Living to Learn: Art & Education for the Common Good\, ARTWEEK 2026 positions Qatar as a key site for rethinking the future of art education\, pedagogy\, and community-driven practice\, with particular attention to regional networks and alternative spaces emerging from the Gulf. \nSpeakers & Guest Artists\nSara Niroobakhsh · Mohammed Somji · Keng Sen Ong · Rose Lejeune · Habeeb Abu Futtaim · Naiza Khan · Sarah Rifkey · Walid Sadek · Aissa Deebi · Zeina Al Arida · Rola Khayyat · Noah Simblist · Dean Amir Berbić \n  \n\nSunday\, February 1\, 2026\nDifferent Modalities of Community Practice\nJoin us for the opening keynote of ARTWEEK 2026\, Different Modalities of Community Practice\, featuring theatre and artistic director\, Keng Sen Ong. A lunch reception will follow the keynote address.  \nPlease register your attendance via this link. \nKeynote: 12–1:30 p.m.\nLunch reception: 1:30–2:30 p.m.\nAtrium\, VCUarts Qatar \n  \nLiving to Learn: Art & Education for the Common Good\nThis panel discussion centered around Noah Simblist’s book\, Living to Learn: Art & Education for the Common Good\, will be moderated by Simblist and include panelists Sarah Rifkey\, Walid Sadek\, Dr. Aissa Deebi and Zeina Arida. \nPlease register your attendance via this link. \n2:30–4 p.m.\nAtrium\, VCUarts Qatar \n  \n\nMonday\, February 2\, 2026\nStudio Visits by Sara Niroobakhsh\nPAPR students are invited to attend a session with Sara Niroobakhsh\, a multidisciplinary artist and educator with over two decades of experience working across Canada\, the U.S.\, Iran\, and the UAE. Niroobakhsh is currently a Visiting Assistant Art Professor in the Interactive Media program at New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD). \n10 a.m.–12:20 p.m. \nClosed event for invited PAPR students only. \n  \nArtistic Communities & Shared Practices\nThis panel discussion\, moderated by Rola Khayyat\, will be a conversation on how artists collaborate\, share knowledge\, support one another\, and explore collective making. Panelists in this discussion include Rose Lejeune\, Mohamed Somji\, Habeeb Abu Futtaim and Naiza Khan. \nPlease register your attendance via this link. \n1:30–3 p.m.\nAtrium\, VCUarts Qatar \n  \nPainting + Printmaking Open Studios\nExplore the Department of Painting + Printmaking at our Open Studios event!  \nStep into our studios. Immerse yourself in our inspiring environment. Whether you’re an aspiring artist or simply curious\, this is a great chance to discover the art – and heart – of our community! \nObserve our students working on their creative projects. Engage with them and learn more about their artistic practices and research. Chat with our friendly faculty who will be on hand to provide information on our curriculum\, projects\, and future opportunities.  \nPlease register your attendance via this link. \n3:30–5:30 p.m.\nPAPR Studios\, VCUarts Qatar \n  \n\nTuesday\, February 3\, 2026\nWhen the System Fails Us: Community as Practice\nAcross the SWANA region\, artists are increasingly questioning dominant cultural frameworks shaped by power\, capital\, and ideology — including Western institutional models long complicit in silencing\, extraction\, and erasure. In the context of the genocide in Gaza and widening repression\, many artists are choosing not to wait for permission or inclusion within systems that demand neutrality in the face of violence. \nThis workshop looks at how artists are building otherwise: forming collectives\, creating alternative spaces\, sharing resources\, and developing ways of practising that are rooted in community rather than institutional approval. These efforts are complex and often fragile\, shaped by real challenges and limitations\, but they are intentional\, principled\, and growing. \nDrawing on examples from across the SWANA region\, this workshop will be a space to think together — to share what we are seeing\, what we are part of\, and what feels possible. Rather than offering fixed answers\, the session focuses on building shared language\, confidence\, and ways of working\, and on imagining how artists can continue reshaping the cultural landscape by building otherwise\, together. \n10 a.m.–12 p.m. \nClosed event for invited PAPR students only. \n  \nArt\, Care\, and Technical Mediation: Performing Life in Contemporary Contexts\nThis lecture introduces the transdisciplinary research practice of Sara Niroobakhsh\, Artist and Research Scholar at New York University Abu Dhabi\, working at the intersection of performance\, bio-technological inquiry\, and immersive systems. Developed through long-term collaboration with scientific laboratories and researchers\, her work examines the body as a site of care and construction\, foregrounding fragility\, intimacy\, and the limits of control within contemporary technological frameworks. The lecture explores how voice\, sensation\, and embodied processes are mediated through technology\, inviting reflection on inherited assumptions about identity\, origin\, creation\, and biological determinism. \nThe talk will be followed by closing remarks by PAPR Director\, Dr. Aissa Deebi. \nPlease register your attendance via this link. \n12:30–2 p.m.\nAtrium\, VCUarts Qatar \n  \nLunch Break & Music\nJoin us for lunch and live music by Michel Dagher (Spice Collective) during the last day of ARTWEEK 2026. \nPlease register your attendance via this link. \n2–3:30 p.m.\nCourtyard\, VCUarts Qatar
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/art-week-2026/
LOCATION:VCUARTS QATAR\, VCUarts Qatar\,Al Luqta Street\,Education City\, Doha\, Qatar\, 8095\, Qatar
CATEGORIES:Painting + Printmaking
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260207
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260210
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20260121T082436Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260129T103931Z
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SUMMARY:Tasmeem Doha 2026: Transmit - Print Fair
DESCRIPTION:Tasmeem Doha 2026: Transmit is proud to announce the Print Fair\, taking place at the VCUarts Qatar Campus from February 7–9\, 2026\, from 3-9 p.m.\, at the Saffron Hall. \nThe Print Fair will feature the following exhibitors: \n40MUSTAQEL\nBANANAFISH\nBAO Books\nBin Atiah Studio\nCairo Art Book Fair\nGoodbye Press\nHWF Studio\nPrinter Matter\nSet Margins\nThe WANAWAL\nWARAQ\nWater With Water\nWedogood \nJoin us for three days of celebrating independent publishing\, print culture\, and creative exchange! \nIn addition\, the Fair will include workshops\, talks\, and performances for attendees to participate in and enjoy. \nFor more information\, view the Tasmeem Doha website. \nTo view and register for events that will be held during the Print Fair\, click here.
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/tasmeem-doha-2026-transmit-print-fair/
LOCATION:Saffron Hall\, VCUarts Qatar
CATEGORIES:Tasmeem
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Qatar:20260212T123000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Qatar:20260212T133000
DTSTAMP:20260404T024953
CREATED:20260204T052524Z
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SUMMARY:Visiting Artist: Sabine Schründer
DESCRIPTION:Through a non-narrative and subjective approach\, Sabine Schründer presents selected projects from recent years\, inviting audiences into an immersive space where images\, texts\, and audio intersect. \nThe talk introduces Off the Grid\, Schründer’s ongoing project developed during an artistic research journey in the Arctic. Moving between visual material and spoken readings\, the lecture explores processes of transformation within systems\, social structures\, and individual perception where meaning is approached as something that shifts and reconfigures across environments and media. \nPlease register to attend this talk. \n\n  \nArtist Bio\nSabine Schründer (b. 1973\, Telgte\, Germany) lives and works as a multimedia artist in Berlin. She studied photography at the Fachhochschule Bielefeld and at RMIT University in Melbourne. Her work has been exhibited internationally and has been shaped by artist residencies in India\, Iceland\, Portugal\, Finland\, and the Arctic. She teaches visual media at the Lette Verein Berlin. \nHer artistic practice explores processes of transformation in systems\, social structures\, and individual perception. She is particularly interested in thought structures\, states of consciousness\, and the conditions under which meaning arises\, shifts\, or disappears. In her artist talk\, Sabine Schründer will give insight into different bodies of work and explain her non-narrative approach. She will also address questions of absence and presence in her practice\, as well as ways of visualizing psychological and emotional structures.
URL:https://qatar.vcu.edu/event/visiting-artist-sabine-schrunder/
LOCATION:Atrium\, VCUarts Qatar
CATEGORIES:Artist Talk
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