Jeddah,:  In a unique and innovative setting avid art collector and connoisseur Basma AlSulaiman hosted a presentation unveiling the first of its kind virtual museum BASMOCA (Basma AlSulaiman Museum of Contemporary Art). The event hosted at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry in cooperation with the Jeddah Young Business Women’s Committee was attended by a number of business personalities and art enthusiasts. 

“Saudi Art Establishes its Global Presence” was the theme of the event that kicked off with a presentation about the virtual museum BASMOCA and a glimpse into its realm followed by the presentation of British art expert Mr. Philip Hoffman the Chief Executive of The Fine Art Fund Group.  During his speech to the group Mr. Hoffman shed light on art history and investment opportunities in the arts arena at the same time featuring the distinctiveness of BASMOCA and the ability to log in from anywhere around the world to visit the museum.

Basma AlSulaiman was able to bring together the passion for arts and open doors for the benefit of the public to appreciate the intricate pieces that have been part of her collection by taking on an innovative business route in opening a museum bypassing limitations and challenges through the usage of Virtual Worlds Technology.  Such a process allows people to interact in a 3D cyberspace that uses the metaphor of the real world but without its physical limitations using the internet. The museum aims to promote contemporary art and consists of the special art collection owned by Mrs. AlSulaiman, including unique artistic works that combine Saudi and international art pieces in one place online. 

“In light of the technical evolution we experience in our world today, and the need to bridge distances between communities and people around the globe, I made sure to extend a new connection between the eastern and western cultures in a scene that blends tradition with modernity; providing an opportunity for Saudi art to establish its presence globally,”  stated Basma AlSulaiman.  “By employing the latest 3D designing techniques through internet applications we are able to introduce a dedicated gateway open for contemporary art,” she continued. 

Basma AlSulaiman started collecting art since the eighties from all over the world; accumulating paintings and sculptures from China to USA that today are the pieces on display at BASMOCA.  Enthusiasm for art collection isn’t her only asset today Basma AlSulaiman has helped in the sponsorship of young talents in Saudi Arabia helping them develop into leading artists through sponsorship and support.

The museum has become a leading example in utilizing technology to exhibit a matchless artistic collection delivering to contemporary art enthusiasts across the globe. 

Visiting Basmoca museum differs from visiting any regular one with the exclusivity on offer per visitor starting with the creation of an avatar of choice to tour the exhibition. The museum also offers its visitors the ability to interact with each other and exchange ideas and thoughts about the exhibits easily whenever and wherever they are using the web.

Keen on cultivating a sector for young art talents in the museum, whether they are from Saudi Arabia or any part of the Arab world.  “I feel that I am representing my country culturally and artistically through this museum that expresses a modern  vision and I wish that my initiative will be first and foremost for the sake of my beloved Saudi Arabia,” she ended.

To visit the museum please go to www.basmoca.com

April 25, 2011

The Canadian University of Dubai, a leading university in research and teaching recently celebrated their fourth annual Global Day event held on April 23, 2011. The event served as a platform for students to showcase the essence of their respective cultures through a series of entertaining dance performances and fashion shows, in addition to stalls that featured various food items and cultural artefacts. 

“The Canadian University of Dubai prides itself for catering to students from 80 plus nationalities, which reaffirms our continuing focus to provide students with an international academic experience, guided by the highest educational and corporate ethics. “The annual Global Day event that we organise is a manifestation of the university’s cultural vibrancy and international appeal,” said Dr. Mohammed Kabir, Vice President of Academic Affairs for the Canadian University of Dubai.

Exhibition at Mall of the Emirates combines art with fashion

When you think of art, more often than not your mind conjures up images of paintings, sculptures, photographs, dancers and theatre. But how often does one come across “wearable art” in one’s life?

Well, if you want to experience this form of art then head down to the Aspen Café in the Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates, to see some exquisite pieces of wearable art created by Gunjan Arora, a designer and emerging “thread artist” from the Indian capital, Delhi.

Arora is showing his wearable works of art and wall panels at an exhibition titled ‘Painting a thread’ at the hotel until May 23.

Talking to Emirates Business about his creations, Arora, who studied fashion design from the National Institute of Fashion Technology said: “Though I have had my label, Rahul and Gunjan, for the last 12 years, I started doing this thread art just three-and-a-half years ago.

“It so happened that I was in my atelier and I happened to glance at the thread basket of one of my tailors which had a big bunch of entangled threads in it which was just beautiful to look at. The bunch had threads of many different colours and hues and I just wanted to retain that look and make something with it.

“I tried doing many things like putting it between two panels of glass and many other things before I came up with this technique, of making a cloth out of different threads and yarns which I have now patented and which I call ‘thread art’.”

Arora makes cloth out of different yarns by just laying them out side by side on the table and then looping them together with a thin transparent silk yarn. He loops them together till the layers are strong enough to become a fabric.

“When people used to see that cloth, they would tell me, ‘this is looking so beautiful what are you going to do with it? You have to do something more with it’. That’s the time I decided to make wall panels and haute couture creations with it so that people can own a piece of art that they can wear.

“The beauty of the whole thing is that I can use all kinds of materials at the same time to make my cloth. I source my yarn from different places like factories, tailor shops, etc, where they have jumbled up yarn. For example we have tied up with Jindal Steel to make table linen for them that will also have steel in it.”

While his wearable art has adorned celebrities like Hollywood actress Nicole Kidman, Bollywood actress Kirron Kher and Indian classical dancer Sonal Mansingh, his wall panels adorn the homes of people like Sean Connery.

Though most of his wearable art is prêt-a-porter, he also does some bespoke creations. “There was a art curator from Turkey who asked me to create a stole for her which would reflect her personality. She said: ‘Gunjan, make a stole for me that defines me no matter what I do with it. It does not matter if I use it as a stole or a wall hanging or a rug, it should define me’.

“Well, I created one for her which reflected her personality and she was very happy with it,” he recalled.

While the wall panels created by Arora can cost anything between Dh5000 to Dh10,000 his wearable art costs between Dh8000 to Dh12,000. Each piece of wearable art can take one to two months to create.

Arora has had two solo exhibitions and a reasonable amount of group shows to his credit. This special art form has been displayed in various galleries in New York, Paris and New Delhi.

Talking about his first solo show Arora said: “Sonal Mansingh performed the storyline for my first solo show. I had created a 22 metre wall panel which told the story of a little girl who forgot about her dreams for life while growing up and how she realised that she had lost her way and finally found a way of fulfilling them. When she saw the panel she loved it and agreed to perform the storyline for the show. Later on I created a stole for her which has her dance mudras on them.”

He plans to continue doing thread art for now and wants to open a boutique in Dubai.

The exhibition, which can be viewed between 11 am and 9 pm, is the brainchild of Vindemia Gallery, and also showcases the works of three other emerging artists from India – Manisha Gawde, Alka Raghuvashi and Sridhar Iyer.

All the artists have interpreted the theme ‘Painting a Thread’ in their own way.

While Manisha, who lives in Dubai, uses the thread-like formations in her paintings as a metaphor to express these unobvious unions between people of various races and cultures, Dr Alka Raghuvanshi, a trained art curator who has participated in shows around the world, focuses her explorations in this show on textiles using hand-carved wooden blocks that are hand printed.

Shridhar Iyer, who has earned major state and national awards in India, calls his series jatra. He unfurls his earlier explorations into terrains of the ancient and the unknown. A fusion of the yin and yang, explores the mysteries of the left and the right hemisphere of the brain of the male and the female.

Despite the different mediums used, the works of the four artists tie up with each other seamlessly and the resulting exhibition is an enriching experience which broadens the horizons of those who care to visit it.

It was one of the biggest media purchases of 2009, although results will not be seen for at least another three to five months.  Al Jazeera Sports, part of the region’s largest and most popular satellite operator Al Jazeera, has bought the rights to Arab Radio and Television’s (ART) sports content, including this year’s FIFA World Cup.

That might not sound like such a big deal, but is in fact estimated to be worth more than $1 billion!

The landmark deal, which makes Al Jazeera the dominant regional player in sports broadcasting, is the second major consolidation between Middle East pay-TV providers in the last twelve months, following the merger between Orbit and Showtime last July.  According to officials at ART, that merger was part of the decision to sell content to Al Jazeera.  Financial pressures from the recession made the decision even easier.

ART was the largest sports rights holder in the region until the sale, with a portfolio that included the FIFA World Cups for next year and 2014, the African Cup of Nationals from next year to 2016, and an array of league championships throughout the region, including the Saudi League and national team matches. Those rights will shift to Al Jazeera, with the exception of the Saudi League (ART is owned by Sheikh Saleh Kamel, a Saudi billionaire, and the contract for league TV rights requires them to go to a Saudi company).

ART will distribute Al Jazeera Sport Channels +1 to +8 “on a non-exclusive basis”, and although Al Jazeera will still have the option of selling its own smart cards, industry observers believe it makes sense for Al Jazeera to leave the distribution game to ART.   The company recently made a major investment in new encryption technology for its smart cards, and has an extensive network of offices throughout the region to service them.

Some fear that ART and Al Jazeera joining forces will eliminate rights holders’ ability to pit them against each other in bidding wars, with potential costs to the consumer.  On the other, concentrating so much sports broadcasting power in one place gives Al Jazeera a stronger position when setting prices for its packages.

For the time being, it seems as though conglomeration has won out again.

Have you been affected by this decision? If so, please email us at editor@pr2live.com and tell us about how your world has changed.

It was one of the biggest media purchases of 2009, although results will not be seen for at least another three to five months.  Al Jazeera Sports, part of the region’s largest and most popular satellite operator Al Jazeera, has bought the rights to Arab Radio and Television’s (ART) sports content, including this year’s FIFA World Cup. Read the full story

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As a contemporary artist living and working in New York, Diana Al-Hadid a 27-year-old sculptor from Syria, has achieved the kind of success one might expect from someone twice her age.  Constructing large architectural sculptures from media such as polystyrene, plaster, fibreglass, wood and wax, Al-Hadid has already won numerous awards for her work, from the Sculpture Space in 2005 to the Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant in 2007.  Read the full story