VCUarts Qatar Takes Part in Tokyo DESIGNART Festival

Exhibits created by faculty, staff and students from Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar (VCUarts Qatar) were part of the prestigious Tokyo DESIGNART Festival that took place in October 2024.

The event was hosted by Januka, a jewelry brand founded in 2012 by Jo Nakamura, a designer with an educational background from Pratt Institute and the prestigious Design Academy Eindhoven. Januka is known for its innovative approach, blending traditional techniques with experimental materials and processes.

The festival’s theme, ‘Reframing – the Beginning of a Shift’, inspired the University’s designers –  Hala Amer (current Digital Design + Fabrication Coordinator and interior design alumna), Saga Elkabbash (current MFA in Design student and interior design alumna), Levi Hammett (Associate Professor and Inaugural Director of Kinetic Imaging), Giovanni Innella (Associate Professor, Graduate Studies), and Martin Basalan Juras (Computation & Electronics Technician, Kinetic Imaging) – to interpret “Reframing” in a tangible, immersive way. 

Using readily available hardware and software, they created ‘Street Scanner’, an interactive installation that invited passersby to engage with and explore the captivating and, at times, unsettling aesthetics generated by machine vision. 

The installation transformed the store window at Januka into a dynamic frame, capturing and broadcasting the world outside in real-time. The storefront became both a lens and a stage, inviting passersby to interact with the surroundings through a new perspective that blended art, design, and urban life into a continuous visual dialogue.

As part of the installation, a set of electronic jewelry designed by VCUarts Qatar alumna Hind Al Saad was showcased. The pieces reinterpreted the modular structures of printed circuit boards into contemporary Islamic patterns, exploring the intersection of computation, Islamic art, and intricate jewelry design.

Saga Elkabbash shared her experience. She said, “Participating in the festival was an incredible experience for us. It was particularly inspiring to explore other projects at the festival. Seeing the innovative approaches and creative techniques of other designers offered fresh perspectives and ideas for my thesis work. It was a valuable opportunity to step outside of my own process and find new inspiration.”

She added, “The way people interacted with our installation was very meaningful. Visitors’ curiosity and genuine engagement in our work were fulfilling, highlighting how design has the power to connect people across different cultures and backgrounds.”

The installation is a collaboration with xLab, a studio for new making and computation at VCUarts Qatar’s Institute for Creative Research. xLab is a dynamic space where art, culture, and science converge. The studio’s projects encompass electronic art, theory, fabrication techniques, and the creation of custom hardware and software, with a mission to foster dialogue between technology and culture in the region.