“Design is inherent in every facet of our region’s evolution,” stated Salem Belyouha, Projects and Events Director of the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, at the opening press conference of the Nuqat Dubai Design Conference 2012.
Stealing the spotlight from Art Dubai, the conference ran from March 17 to 22 and was organized in partnership with the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Emirate’s dedicated Authority for culture, arts, and heritage, and in association with the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), host of the lectures and workshops.
The truth is the Nuqat Dubai Design Conference was the talk of the town that month. Despite all the internationally curated exhibits and the presence of high-profile artists, people seemed to only want to discuss this conference happening at DIFC. You could hear the lectures being revisited among art students visiting the gallery booths of Art Dubai. Instead of the usual art gossip, Nuqat seemed to dominate every smoking break. Even curators hungered for an hour or two so that they may sneak away to a lecture. It was Artistic Arabism in full bloom.
All of the attention may have had to do with the fact that this year marked Nuqat’s largest ever consortium, which served as a platform of communications aimed at connecting and educating creatives in the Middle East. Nuqat’s aim is at leveraging this network to contribute to the development of a strong cultural scene. Under the theme of “The Lost City of Arabesque,” designers and participants explored the impact their work has in defining contemporary Arab identity.
The Nuqat Dubai Design Conference 2012 presented some of the most creative Arab forces from across the region and conducted workshops that stimulated discussion and encouraged the exchange of ideas on the various spectrums of creativity. Aligned with its mission to bridge the gap between heritage and crafts and the contemporary creative industries, Nuqat exposed their thinly divided borders and revealed to just what extent each discipline is effectively derived from the other. Saudi’s very own product genius, Ahmad Angawi received a standing ovation after his lecture on the “Lost City.” The enthusiasm of what was happening was evident in everyone in attendance; the Arabs were finally the rock stars of their own stadium.
The history of Nuqat, first known as “Nuqat Ala Al Huroof”, started off with one objective in mind, “to develop Arab creativity on all levels,” be it in design, advertising, architecture, fashion, production, or any of the multi-creative fields. “I would attend all these workshops and lectures abroad in Europe and the United States, and I thought, ‘Why don’t we have this in the Arab world?” revealed Nuqat co-founder, Hussa Al Humaidi. “We wanted to bring Arab designers who were working abroad back to the region and foster creative exchange here at home.”
Nuqat aims to educate and connect creatives, in order to explore, tackle and resolve creative change in the Middle East, summarized Tala Saleh, the KSA ambassador of Nuqat. “Nuqat’s mission is to advance creativity as a cultural force and enrich society, blurring the geographic boundaries through combining creative forces in the Middle East,” added Al Humaidi.
The conference brought together 23 designers from different disciplines, including architecture, interior design, graphic design, filmmaking, fashion design, jewelry design, and image making, in addition to participants and delegates from the Middle East. With over 20 lectures and 10 interactive workshops over six consecutive days, Nuqat provided valuable insights into the design industry.
The line-up of guest speakers was like the All-Star dream team of the design world’s most talented Arabs. Starting with the internationally acclaimed graphic designer and typographer based in Holland, Tarek Atrissi, Plus Aziz, senior trend analyst at NYC-based marketing company Fathom+Hatch; Rana Salam, our beloved branding genius, and ending with Kameel Hawa, Jeddah-based designer and award-winning word artist and Haleh Anvari, the Iranian published writer and photographer.
In addition, Nuqat featured speakers from the wider Arab World, including, award winning artist and calligrapher, Ali Omar Ermes and celebrated Egyptian jewelry designer Azza Fahmi, to Pascal Zoghbi, acclaimed type designer and founder of “29 Arabic Letters” and Alfred Tarazi, political mixed media artist from Lebanon. The Gulf brought its own Sheikha Alanoud Al Sabah - Kuwaiti jewelry designer and founder of Octium, Salem Alqassimi, multimedia creative from the UAE and the founder of Fikra and our favorite luxury shoe designer, Sultan Darmaki.
“It is initiatives like this that drives patronage in the arts to grow leaps and bounds,” stated Belyouha. “We are confident that the Nuqat Dubai Design Conference has set the benchmark that will bring the region’s creative minds together, to stimulate debate and discussion.” Judging from the conversation I just had with some European curators at the water cooler, I’d say that’s about right.
Published in the latest issue of Oasis Magazine (in stores and online)
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