DUBAI: The UAE’s Culture Summit Abu Dhabi is returning with a new edition in October.
Taking place at Manarat Al-Saadiyat from Oct. 23-25, the annual event will bring world experts in the culture sector to the UAE capital to explore this year’s theme, “A Living Culture.”
The sessions will cover a wide range of topics such as “Afghanistan Through a Culture Lens,” which will discuss the importance of preserving cultural assets with the Taliban taking over the country.
Another topic that will be discussed is “Hollywood and the Diversity of Cultural Expression.” This talk will be about past criticisms of the industry such as lack of representation of women and people of color and the impact of new digital and production platforms like Netflix on the diversity of cultural expression.
The program will host a creative conversations segment led by veteran curator and broadcaster Tim Marlow, who is the director of the Design Museum in London, featuring guests like the world’s first humanoid artist, Ai-Da the robot.
This segment will also host Dr. Jos Boys, co-founder of The DisOrdinary Architectue Project that explores – with disabled artists – creative ways for access and inclusion. The talk will focus on how disability and difference are a creative generator.
The summit will present film screenings and artist performances by the likes of renowned oud player Naseer Shamma, a dance performance by choreographer Kader Attou, and many more.
The artists scheduled to give talks at the event include American artist Stephanie Dinkins, Nigerian artist Emeka Ogboh and Saudi artist Muhannad Shono.
Some of the keynote speakers include world-renowned architect Frank Gehry and Amin Taha – the London based architect whose stone façade design of the 15 Clerkenwell Close building created a controversy with the local authorities, demanding it to be demolished. Taha successfully challenged that decision and the award-winning building remained.
The UAE Minister of Culture and Youth Noura Al-Kaabi, former President of Croatia Ivo Josipović, and assistant director general of UNESCO Ernesto Ottone will also speak at the summit.