New Routes for Arabian Heritage Curated by Noor Aldabbagh

Once Upon DESIGN: New Routes for Arabian Heritage Curated by Noor Aldabbagh Index Acknowledgements 01 Foreward by Director of 1971 Design Space Journey with Giuseppe Moscatello Gulf Designers 03 and Heritage Noor Aldabbagh 05 Travelling with Sound Through the Middle East Neil van Al-Balad, The Historic del Linden 11 Core of Jeddah: a Time Travelogue Atef Alshehri and Mercedes Corbell 17 Once Upon DESIGN: New Routes for Arabian Heritage Noor Aldabbagh 30 Transcript of an Interview with Sheikh Salem Al-Qassimi in Arabish 63 Acknowledgements H.H. Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council, Ruler of Sharjah Special Thanks Aaliah Alaali H.H. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Abdulla Awadi Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah Alia bin Omair Aljood Lootah Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Operations Al Sarooj General Maint. Cont. Chairperson of Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) Wael Itani Amer Aldour Jassim Safar Annabelle de Gersigny Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Atef Alshehri Ministry Of Culture & Knowledge Development Programme Advisors Beth Yoder Indira Barve Chris Weaver H.E. Marwan bin Jassim Al Sarkal, Laila Al-Hamad Deena Houranieh CEO of Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) Mercedes Corbell Eugenia Lopez Reus Neil van der Linden Fari Bradley Director Giuseppe Moscatello Sheikh Salem Al-Qassimi Hadeyeh Badri Hamad Khoory Exhibition Curator Noor Aldabbagh Hashem Montasser Haydar Hindi Assitant Curator Mouza Almatrooshi Hind bin Demaithan Karim Sultan Exhibition Designer Paolomaria Giannotti Khalid Mezaina Kholoud Sharafi Maraya Art Centre Coordinator Eiman Al Amri Khulood Thani Leila Bin Gacem Programme Manager Dana Al Sadek Majid Al Essa Miguel Jaime Art Coordinator Roderick Jimenez Mohammed Kazem Peter Byebieraggaard Public Relations and Communications Executive Yusur Al-Dabbagh Sally Denton Riem Hassan Editing and Translation in Arabic Maryam Wissam (ila al amam) Sheikh Khalid Al Qassemi Sumaya Dabbagh Design Coordinator Noor Abu Hijleh Thuraya Arrayed Zahed Sultan Digital Marketing Coordinator Faisal Mohammed Zeinab Al Hashemi 1 2 Giuseppe Moscatello, We are proud to support this debut exhibition by Banafsajeel in the U.A.E, a homegrown initiative founded by Noor Aldabbagh, which provides a platform for designers and artists in the Gulf to create and Director of Maraya present their work, and this falls in line with our mission here at 1971 Design Space. Curated by Aldabbagh, Once Upon DESIGN: New Art Centre and 1971 Routes for Arabian Heritage features seven installation which are new and locally produced commissions that offer a contemporary outlook on Arabian customs and traditions. Different paths have been laid out in the Design Space Arabian Peninsula throughout generations, due to its history and influx of various cultures, intersecting and adding layers to traditional customs, and in turn creating new ones that are now more apparent and recognised in society. Representing an innovative insight into the Gulf This exhibition showcases some of these traditional contemporary design scene, the designers: Ayah elements via mediums of architecture, product design Al Bitar & Reem Hantoush (Saudi Arabia & U.A.E.), and graphic design. A select group of designers have COdESIGN (U.A.E. & Italy), Diana Hawatmeh (U.A.E.), collaborated across disciplines to develop interactive Latifa Saeed & Talin Hazbar (U.A.E.), LOCI Architecture works that examine age-old traditions and customs & Design Studio (U.A.E.), Think Tank Co. (Saudi Arabia), with a contemporary lens and propose new routes and and Studio Mieke Meijer (The Netherlands), all encourage sensibilities in response by enhancing or altering them. visitors to experience the exhibition through interacting with the installations and choosing their own route through the space. Once Upon DESIGN is the result of a year of research by Banafsajeel and 1971 Design Space, under the theme of “Reinventing Heritage”. These works go beyond the physical preservation or development of tangible heritage; by focusing on advances in customs and oral traditions familiar throughout the Arabian Peninsula, which have been inherited, and that will continue to be passed on, maintaining their true value despite continual developments. 3 4 Journey with a new and growing design industry with creative and commercial potential. There was a general frustration with a lack of appreciation of the value of design beyond Gulf Designers the aesthetic in broader society. Finally, a yearning for more criticality in discussion amongst designers in order to meaningfully progress their work made evident a need for better-structured design programmes. These should and Heritage address technical and practical needs of production alongside conceptual concerns. This research helped to reveal a common frustration with simplistic heritage tropes in the Gulf, as well as a superficial connection between designers and local narratives in light of ongoing external design influences. In particular, thoughtful contextual design is severely Once Upon DESIGN proposes to transform dominant lacking across design disciplines due to the dominance understandings of the heritage of the Arabian Peninsula of Western-oriented design education in the region. through the lens of contemporary design. Building on ongoing research into design communities in When discussing the heritage of the Arabian Penninsula Noor Aldabbagh the Gulf, this exhibition is the culmination of a with designers, it became apparent that icons of tangible year of research by Banafsajeel and the result of a Noor is the founder of Banafsajeel, a curatorial platform heritage, including traditional handicrafts such as Sadu collaborative effort with 1971 Design Space in that engages artists and designers through collaborative and palm weaving, inspired most of the designers Sharjah, and a select group of advisors and designers. projects in the Gulf. She has an honours BA from Harvard interviewed to a limited extent when compared to the in Visual and Environmental Studies, and a Masters wealth of customs, behaviors and oral traditions which with Distinction from the Sotheby’s Institute of Art they sought to explore around these objects. in London in Art Business. UNEARTHING THE STORY The research conducted in the lead up to the exhibition aimed to understand the needs of designers working today across various design fields in the Gulf who had displayed an interest in the heritage of this region. A design programme was structured based on the input of 30 designers interviewed including graphic designers, architects, and product designers, as well as creative professionals who work with designers such as curators and programme managers. Overall, the research found that a strong sense of community connected designers on a social level, especially in the U.A.E., with a shared optimism about 5 6 CAPTURING THE INTANGIBLE Banafsajeel initiated a couple of focus groups hosted at 1971 Design Space. The aim was to convene designers who displayed a longer-term interest in the subject for a collective conversation across design disciplines. Advisors were invited to come onboard and give feedback on a number of ideas presented by designers around the theme of “reinventing heritage” some more experimental than others. Everyday technical and practical production challenges such assourcing suppliers and fabricators were also shared and discussed. Overlapping subjectivities about what constituted “heritage” emerged from various vantage points, leading to a growing interest in exploring the topic through a design exhibition. Designers were invited to submit proposals for new installations that could further their examination of the subject, to be produced and exhibited in 1971 Design Space. Intangible heritage in particular presents an interesting challenge: how can one materialize a legacy of what one is quite literally unable to grasp or see, but can only absorb through taking the time to feel, listen and comprehend? GETTING OUR HEADS AROUND IT Collaboration across design disciplines resulted in varied imaginative ways of referencing and responding to knowledge passed through generations within the Arabian Peninsula. Designers were linked with advisors based on their proposed works and had an opportunity to reflect on their process and incorporate critical feedback. By altering scale, manipulating pattern or symbolically directing light, designers bring into play various temporal trajectories and historical and social dynamics. In this way, they create a sense of entering other moments and spaces that are still undoubtedly here and now. The exhibition utilises circularity and repetition in architecture to denote the passing of time with reference to inherited social practice, implying a seamless continuity or coming full circle. Furthermore, within group interactions in the space, the circular architectural structures also serve to create a sense of community and collective experience. 7 8 Publication Design In addition to reflecting the works and designers’ processes, this publication presents a number of texts relating to the topic of the exhibition: Firstly, Neil van del Linden’s piece describes how sound is used in two installations in the exhibition, and as a subject of exploration and experimentation in the creative scene in the Gulf and broader Arab region. This expands directly on the subject of intangible heritage relating to customs, oral traditions, and sound in the Arabian

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