Art Dubai spotlights the Global South and art as healing

Art Dubai spotlights the Global South and art as healing
Art Dubai once again reflects the city’s diverse global communities, identities and cultures with over 72 cities represented through artists. (Supplied)
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Updated 03 March 2024
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Art Dubai spotlights the Global South and art as healing

Art Dubai spotlights the Global South and art as healing

DUBAI: Long a crossroads for cultures from the Far East, South Asia, Europe and the Americas, Dubai’s strategic global location has made it a pivotal place for cultural exchange. Art Dubai’s 17th edition, which wraps up on March 3, further exemplifies the Gulf city’s unique location and cosmopolitan nature, particularly for artists and cultural platforms from the Global South.

The “Global South” has been a buzzword for some time, largely denoting various countries around the world that are sometimes described as “developing” with the majority, although by no means all, situated in the Southern Hemisphere, largely in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America.




Work by Saudi artist Abdulsattar Al-Mussa at Art Dubai. (Supplied)

Art Dubai this year welcomes more than 120 gallery presentations, drawn from more than 60 cities and over 40 countries across four sections: Contemporary, Bawwaba, Art Dubai Modern and Art Dubai Digital. Over 65 percent of the galleries hail from the regions that make up the Global South.

“Art Dubai has been focusing on the Global South for the last eight years,” Pablo del Val, Art Dubai’s artistic director, told Arab News. “We are trying to deepen the conversation about the Global South is as well as about issues regarding displacement and how the Global South is present in the outskirts of Paris and Los Angeles.

“For us, the Global South is really a state of mind more than a state of geographic belonging,” added Del Val. “We are very interested in illustrating how this idea reflects the times in which we are living.”

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Of equal importance, stresses Del Val is this year’s Bawwaba gallery section curated by Emiliano Valdes under the theme “Sanación/Healing.” It will feature a series of new performances and activations focusing on ideas of spirituality, introspection, community and the power of art to help human beings navigate challenging times by embracing unity. 

Participating artists in this section include a number of names from the so-called Global South, including Argentinian artist, choreographer and dancer Cecilia Bengolea, Kerala-born Berlin-based artist Sajan Mani, Debashish Paul from West Bengal in India, Palestinian artist Mirna Bamieh, Indian artists Mithu Sen and Emirati creative Hashel Lamki.

Hailing from cities including Sao Paolo, Bogota, Tehran, Dubai and Mumbai, among others, participating galleries at Art Dubai further build on the fair’s commitment to representing and championing art from the Global South. These include the Aisha Alabbar Gallery, among the first galleries in Dubai focused on contemporary and modern art by Emirati, local and regional artists that is exhibiting a solo booth of works by Emirati artist Alia Hussain Lootah; Dastan Gallery from Tehran, Iran, dedicated to promoting Iranian contemporary art globally that is presenting a dynamic group showing of emerging and established artists from Iran, including Reza Aramesh, Fereydoun Ave, Farah Ossouli, Sahand Hesamiyan and the Ghasemi Brothers; Gallery One from Ramallah, Palestine, showcasing works by Libyan artist Samira Badran and Palestinian Manal Mahamid; and Galeria Espacio Continuo from Bogota, Colombia, a gallery that opened in 2020 dedicated to showcasing an exclusive program of local artists that highlights dynamic abstract works by Miler Lagos and Ana María Rueda.

The Global South is additionally representing strongly in the fair’s Modern section,curated by Dr. Christianna Bonin, which traces the emergence of new modernisms across the Global South through works of modernists from Syria, Egypt, Uganda and Sri Lanka who exhibited and studied in the Soviet Union in the 1960s.

Another talent from the Global South who is playing a major role at the event is Goa-based artist Sahil Naik who devised the the fourth edition of the A.R.M. Holding Children’s Program. It will be launched launching at the fair before expanding to over 100 schools and 15,000 students.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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“He is going to be encouraging children to imagine little worlds and environments based on the ideas of their homes and the environment and how you actually constitute and lay out cities,” Art Dubai’s Executive Director Benedetta Ghione told Arab News. “He will ask them what makes a home, how do we imagine the future, etc... We these programs we try to encourage the children to think about the world through the lens of culture and creativity.”

“The children’s program continues to grow outside of the fair,” added Ghione. “For eight weeks after the fair, we are going into more than 100 schools and reaching over 15,000 children. This is a program that continues to grow and is now reaching all seven Emirates.”

 


Ayman Yossri Daydban: ‘The discrepancy between visual appeal and cultural awareness is key’ 

Ayman Yossri Daydban: ‘The discrepancy between visual appeal and cultural awareness is key’ 
Updated 07 February 2025
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Ayman Yossri Daydban: ‘The discrepancy between visual appeal and cultural awareness is key’ 

Ayman Yossri Daydban: ‘The discrepancy between visual appeal and cultural awareness is key’ 
  • The Saudi-Palestinian artist discusses his solo exhibition ‘Winter,’ now showing in Jeddah 

JEDDAH: In his solo exhibition “Winter” at Jeddah’s Athr Gallery, the Saudi-Palestinian artist Ayman Yossri Daydban provides a compelling exploration of ihram clothing — the humble garments worn by pilgrims for the rituals of Hajj and Umrah — and how it connects to climate change.  

“This exhibition is part of my Ihramat collection, which uses the ihram to highlight its significance in popular culture, religious identity, and as clothing and fabric,” Daydban tells Arab News. “The idea behind the color and material is inspired by the climate during Hajj season, the usual hot weather during pilgrimage, and how the ihram fabric is lightweight, designed for enduring the heat.” 

“Winter,” he explains, refers not only to the season but also to what climate change could mean for the future of pilgrimage — suggesting that traditions once defined by their specific environmental contexts may eventually be disrupted.  

Winter from the Ihramat series, 2025. (Supplied)

“White, which is symbolically associated with purity and clarity, is a color that reflects sunlight. When you think about the Hajj happening in the summer, and considering new climate realities and changes, you understand that the idea of ‘winter’ in this context is a metaphor that references the future moments when climate changes may affect pilgrimage,” Daydban says. 

The exhibition, which runs until March, revisits Daydban’s iconic works from previous years, particularly “Ihramat” (2012) and “Muss” (1996), recontextualizing the material and its meanings within the lens of contemporary concerns such as climate change and the commodification of culture and spirituality. 

Daydban, born in Palestine in 1966 and now based in Jeddah, is poised and calm, neatly tying together the philosophical strands of his conversation. His last name means “watchman” in Arabic, and Daydban is an insightful observer of cultural shifts and national identity. His art features in several major international collections, including the British Museum, underscoring his importance as a leading voice on identity, alienation and belonging. 

Winter X, from Ihramat series, 2025. (Supplied)

In “Winter,” Daydban simultaneously weaves together and challenges traditional notions of materiality and spirituality. His use of the ihram fabric in a radically different form emphasizes the fluid nature of cultural objects. Instead of using the fabric as a garment for spiritual purification, he transforms it into everyday items, shifting their role and associations.  

“The way I use the ihram fabric here is quite different from its original context—it’s more like towels or blankets, which changes the associations we have with the material,” he says. “For instance, the blankets, although made of similar fabric, are sourced from China. These blankets are available in stores and contribute to my idea of global trade and the commercial aspects of such cultural items.” 

Daydban has stretched the fabric over identical rectangular wooden panels — uniform, like Muslims praying in rows — with an empty square at the center, seemingly hinting at the Kabaa. One lone piece is the invert of that, furry and full, a rectangle that one could argue fits into the void the others carry.  

Winter V, From Ihramat series, 2025. (Supplied)

In his transformation of the ihram fabric, Daydban emphasizes the economic and cultural implications of how these objects move through global systems. “The materials have a significant connection to economic matters,” he says. “Although the cloths may appear similar, each has its own unique pattern and design. The variations offer a chance to explore cultural identity, to consider how these designs hold individual meaning, yet can be visually selected without awareness of their cultural background. The patterns in the cloth might be taken for granted without understanding the cultural implications behind them. This discrepancy between visual appeal and cultural awareness is key in my work.” 

Through the juxtaposition of global trade and religious symbols, Daydban highlights the dissonance between the sacred and the commercial.  

“What I’m trying to achieve is a reflection on beauty in the details of cultural symbols — taking a material like the ihram and transforming it into something that holds contemporary meaning,” he explains. “Through ‘Winter,’ I examine how fabric can transcend its usual associations with ritual to become a statement about today’s world. It’s a critique of how these items, which once carried deep religious significance, are now sold and consumed globally, detached from their cultural roots.” 

Winter Ten. (Supplied)

The exhibition addresses how even the smallest details within the fabric can carry powerful meanings. “(It) is deeply connected to trade, materials, and economics — using the ihram as a tool to reflect on the broader systems that control these items,” Daydban says. “In terms of design, each square in the exhibition holds a specific visual and symbolic weight. Even though they may seem similar at first glance, they each possess a unique quality that highlights how even the smallest details make a difference when exploring identity. 

“The show invites viewers to experience a connection between the material and the emotion it conveys, to understand how ihram is not merely a religious garment but a global symbol of cultural exchange and transformation,” he adds. “As an artist, I’m trying to make sense of how such materials are used across different contexts, with their significance becoming diluted as they move through systems of commerce.”  

The idea that art can challenge the commodification of cultural symbols is central to “Winter,” with Daydban urging his audience to reconsider their understanding of material value and cultural meaning. 

“I encourage viewers to reflect on this transformation and the relationship between artistic practice and commercial influence,” he says. “Take a moment to consider the process of how cultural objects are commodified and how, through art, we can bring awareness to their deeper meanings.” 


REVIEW: Mo Amer’s comedy drama ‘Mo’ makes triumphant return with season two

REVIEW: Mo Amer’s comedy drama ‘Mo’ makes triumphant return with season two
Updated 07 February 2025
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REVIEW: Mo Amer’s comedy drama ‘Mo’ makes triumphant return with season two

REVIEW: Mo Amer’s comedy drama ‘Mo’ makes triumphant return with season two

DUBAI: Season two of Mo Amer’s semi-autobiographical comedy drama is apparently its last. Amer has said the events of the series had to stop before Oct. 7, 2023, to avoid the horrors that have since been perpetrated in Gaza overtaking the narrative. Though understandable, that’s a real shame, because “Mo” is one of the best shows on television, exploring incredibly complex and divisive topics — family, religion, imbalance of power, exile, mental health, parenthood, multiculturalism and much more — with an artful lightness of touch, without ever taking them lightly. In season two, the ensemble cast are once again excellent, always serving the story, never looking to outshine it.

Amer plays Mo Najjar, a Kuwait-born Palestinian refugee living in Houston, Texas. Mo, his mother Yusra (the superb Farah Bsieso), and his older brother Sameer (Omar Elba) have been waiting more than two decades to have their asylum case heard.

Season two begins with Mo in Mexico, six months after the events of season one saw him stranded there. He’s living with the aunts of his ex-girlfriend Maria (Mo believes the fact he told her to “move on” will not prevent them reuniting — he’s wrong), and his family’s asylum hearing is just days away, but bureaucracy is preventing him from returning to be with them.

In one of several examples of the way “Mo” tackles dark topics with rare grace and humor, Mo attempts to illegally cross back into the US but is captured by border patrol and incarcerated (though not before his country music impersonation nearly convinces his captors he’s a red-blooded American). When he does eventually get back ‘home,’ he finds the family olive oil business is thriving, and that Maria has indeed moved on, starting a relationship with an Israeli chef.

Seeing friends and family prospering without him isn’t something Mo is necessarily ready to celebrate. That’s one of the great things about the show: Amer is as comfortable pointing out Mo’s own failings — his neediness, his pride — as he is railing at, say, the Kafkaesque officialdom that plagues his family’s existence. “Mo” is beautifully balanced in so many ways — from the blend of tragedy and comedy to the mix of maddening realism and fantastical dream sequences. Even the family’s joyous return to Palestine in the finale must be weighed against their stoicism in the face of the iniquities visited on them by the Occupation.

“Mo” isn’t just a great show, but a necessary one.


Meet Riyadh’s first French cheesemonger, Philippe Caillouet  

Meet Riyadh’s first French cheesemonger, Philippe Caillouet  
Updated 07 February 2025
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Meet Riyadh’s first French cheesemonger, Philippe Caillouet  

Meet Riyadh’s first French cheesemonger, Philippe Caillouet  
  • ‘A good cheese doesn’t just feed your body, it feeds your soul,’ Caillouet tells Arab News 

RIYADH: When Philippe Caillouet imagines Riyadh’s future, he doesn’t see glittering skyscrapers or the construction cranes carving out Vision 2030. He sees cheese. 

Not the rubbery processed slices found in diners across the city. No, Philippe’s vision is one of hand-pressed wheels of camembert, buttery brie layered with the sharpness of Madinah mint, and alpine tommes with histories as rich as their rinds. 

At the Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh, where he oversees Café Boulud’s cheese cave and non-alcoholic wine library, Caillouet curates dozens of artisanal varieties to introduce Riyadh’s diners to the nuanced flavors of European cheesemaking. 

Philippe Caillouet. (Supplied)

“Cheese isn’t a commodity,” he says, standing in the cave’s hushed cool. “It’s a living product. It has terroir, history, personality. You can’t treat it like a block of butter.” 

Caillouet is Riyadh’s first French cheesemonger and he carries the title with pride. He also sports a tri-colored collar that marks him as a Meilleur Ouvrier de France, a national accolade given to his country’s finest craftsmen. 

The meticulously climate-controlled cave housing some 60 varieties of handpicked cheese. There’s gruyère, manchego, comté, and the indulgent vacherin Mont d’Or, which Caillouet serves baked and oozing, accompanied by non-alcoholic wine pairings from the library he also oversees. 

“It’s not only about having the best cheese,” he says. “It’s about knowing how to serve it — the right temperature, the right accompaniments, the right story. If a cheese doesn’t have a story, it’s just food. When it has one, it becomes an experience.” 

Born in Poitiers, the 56-year-old started his career in hospitality school, where an inspiring teacher instilled in him a passion for the “art of service.” From there, he worked his way up through the French hospitality circuit, running dining rooms at Michelin-starred institutions including La Palme d’Or in Cannes. But it wasn’t the gleaming service stations or polished silverware that captivated him — it was the cheese. 

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“It’s similar to wine,” he says. “Cheese is tied to the land, the season, the hands that make it. No two wheels are ever the same.” 

By the time he opened his own fromagerie in the south of France, his reputation was firmly established. Yacht owners from Monaco, Cannes Film Festival organizers, and French Riviera gourmands made pilgrimages to his shop for perfectly aged Roqueforts and custom-made cheese boards, long before grazing platters became a trend. 

So what brought Caillouet to Saudi Arabia last year? Opportunity. 

“Cheese, as a concept, is still in its infancy in Saudi, but the people are curious, sophisticated, and hungry for new experiences,” he says.  

Nowhere is Caillouet’s panache more evident than in his handmade Paris-Madinah cheese — a creamy brie infused with the sharp, herbaceous mint of Madinah. 

“I was amazed by the mint here,” he says. “It smells like mint, tastes like mint — it’s alive. You don’t get that everywhere.” 

At first, it was offered discreetly to adventurous diners, but within weeks, word spread. Now, guests arrive asking for “the one with the mint,” often bringing friends or returning with family to try it again. “That’s how cheese becomes culture,” he says. “It spreads, person to person.” 

Riyadh’s diners, while adventurous, do arrive with preconceptions. Blue cheese, for example, can be met with hesitation, due to associations with overpowering flavors. 

“If you’ve only had mass-produced blue cheese with a year-long shelf life, of course you won’t like it,” Caillouet says. So, he introduces them to artisanal blues — creamy, subtle, with just the right tang. “When you explain why it’s different, people trust you. And then they fall in love with it.” 

Riyadh is rapidly becoming a global dining destination. “It’s alive, growing, full of potential. You just have to nurture it,” Caillouet says. 

Like the Kingdom, Caillouet is dreaming big. “Why shouldn’t Saudis have the same level of cheese as they do in Europe?” he asks. “They’re already flying to Paris for Chanel and Hermès — why not stay here and enjoy the best Gruyère or Camembert? The country deserves it.” 

At 56, he shows no signs of slowing down. “I don’t believe in retirement,” he says. “If you love what you do, why would you stop?”  

For Caillouet, cheese is more than his livelihood — it’s a purpose. “A good cheese doesn’t just feed your body, it feeds your soul,” he says, recalling a spring day in France when a bite of fresh chèvre stopped him in his tracks.  

“It tasted like sunshine, like the season itself. That’s what I want to bring to Saudi Arabia — cheese that makes you pause, think, feel,” he says. “That’s the future I imagine.” 


Review: Ferrell and Witherspoon can’t raise heat in lukewarm ‘You’re Cordially Invited’

Review: Ferrell and Witherspoon can’t raise heat in lukewarm ‘You’re Cordially Invited’
Updated 06 February 2025
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Review: Ferrell and Witherspoon can’t raise heat in lukewarm ‘You’re Cordially Invited’

Review: Ferrell and Witherspoon can’t raise heat in lukewarm ‘You’re Cordially Invited’
  • Wedding planners collide in by-the-numbers rom-com

LONDON: Usually, the phrase “less than the sum of its parts” serves as a neat intro to an absolute evisceration of a movie. But in the case of new Prime Video rom-com “You’re Cordially Invited,” it’s a slightly more literal take. Because, as the trailer (and all the promo materials) would have you believe, this Will Ferrell/Reece Witherspoon movie is a high-energy battle royale between a pair of warring wedding planners at a double-booked venue, each trying to ruin the other’s ceremony by (initially) fair means, before descending into a series of foul-mouthed schemes and increasingly elaborate set-pieces.

But there’s actually little of that faux-antagonistic “Bride Wars” vibe about this movie from “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” and “Bad Neighbors” director Nicholas Stoller. In an attempt to make the two leads more than just cookie-cutter rom-com characters, each is given a fairly elaborate and emotionally nuanced backstory. Widower Jim (Ferrell) is desperate to throw daughter Jenni a romantic wedding that her mother would have loved, but winds up projecting his fears of obsolescence and solitude onto the young couple, while successful TV producer Margot (Witherspoon) wants to arrange the perfect wedding for her sister Neve, but struggles to hide her resentment towards her emotionally unavailable mother and her frustration with her wider family for not showing an interest in her life and career.

And those emotional complexities wind up being more engaging than the movie’s by-the-numbers comedy beats. Because while Ferrell and Witherspoon are both more than capable of shouldering the burden of the big laughs, these wedding-based capers are nothing we haven’t seen a hundred times before. But a slightly saccharine, slightly comedic take on fears of emotional estrangement and abandonment, fronted by two charismatic leads? That’s something different, at least.

So there’s a degree of frustration that the movie didn’t take the time to at least explore this slightly different direction. Instead, “You’re Cordially Invited” is the kind of film you’ve forgotten the second the credits roll — a fairly satisfying way to waste a couple of hours, but nothing to make it stand out from all those other wedding-based comedies.


Man charged in 2020 killing of rapper Pop Smoke pleads guilty to manslaughter to avoid trial

Man charged in 2020 killing of rapper Pop Smoke pleads guilty to manslaughter to avoid trial
Updated 06 February 2025
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Man charged in 2020 killing of rapper Pop Smoke pleads guilty to manslaughter to avoid trial

Man charged in 2020 killing of rapper Pop Smoke pleads guilty to manslaughter to avoid trial
  • Corey Walker, 24, pleaded guilty Wednesday to voluntary manslaughter
  • He was accused of leading the group to the rented mansion where the 20-year-old New York rapper Pop Smoke was killed

LOS ANGELES: A man charged in the 2020 killing of rapper Pop Smoke during a robbery at a Hollywood Hills mansion accepted a plea deal, averting a trial on a murder charge that was to have started Thursday.
Corey Walker, 24, pleaded guilty Wednesday to voluntary manslaughter and two counts of robbery in exchange for a sentence of 29 years in prison, which he will receive at a later hearing.
He was the only adult charged in the case along with three who were juveniles at the time of the crime, including a then-15-year-old gunman. All have already reached separate deals.
An email sent to Walker’s lawyers seeking comment was not immediately answered.
He was accused of leading the group to the rented mansion where the 20-year-old New York rapper Pop Smoke, whose legal name was Bashar Barakah Jackson, was killed on Feb. 19, 2020, during what was to be a four-day trip to Los Angeles. A 911 call from a friend of someone in the house reported armed intruders inside, police said.
The robbers knew the address because a day earlier, Pop Smoke had posted a photograph on social media of a gift bag he had received and the address was on a label, authorities said.
The rapper was in the shower when masked robbers confronted him. During a struggle, the 15-year-old, pistol-whipped him and shot him three times in the back, according to court testimony.
The attackers stole his diamond-studded Rolex watch and sold it for $2,000, a detective testified.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, Pop Smoke arrived on the hip-hop scene in 2018 and broke out with “Welcome to the Party” an anthem with boasts about shootings, killings and drugs that became a huge sensation, and prompted Nicki Minaj to drop a verse on a remix.
He had several other hits, including the album “Shoot for the Stars Aim for the Moon,” which was released posthumously.