Research Lecture

15 Apr 2021

Patterns in the MENA Region: Material Culture, Representation and Communities

By Adina Hempel, Atteqa Ali, Janet Bellotto, Kara McKeown, Marie-Claire Bakker, and Sabrina DeTurk

Date: April 20, 2021

Time: from 12.30 pm - 1.30pm (UAE time)

Register for the webinar: click here

The presentation will share a collection of projects exploring the visual and organizational elements of material culture, representation and community that were part of the research cluster the Patterns in the MENA Region. The cluster comprises four main projects that range from: the documentation of traditional jewellery of the Gulf region primarily through the collection of oral histories tracing the social role played by jewellery throughout the life cycle of women in the project From Cradle to Grave, a Life Cycle in Jewelry by Marie-Claire Bakker and Kara McKeown; the project Community Collaborations by Atteqa Ali which investigated the patterns of community formations across the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia including their impact on the development of artistic practices; the project Writing on the Wall by Sabrina DeTurk who looked at the diverse production of street art in the Middle East and North Africa within the social, political and cultural contexts for this art form; and the project City EastWest by Janet Bellotto and Adina Hempel, which explored the notion of authenticity and place specificity including how such constructs are formed and influenced through media representation as well as personal experiences. The research findings are brought together in an exhibition that will be on display in the Foundry Gallery/Downtown Dubai from April 18th till May 8th 2021.

Each project will be introduced and main findings shared, followed by a Q&A. The session will be moderated by Woodman Taylor from the College of Arts and Creative Enterprises.