A work by Lubnah Ansari from the After The Beep exhibition, which asked artists to respond to each other's works by creating their own pieces within 48 hours. Lubnah Ansari
A work by Lubnah Ansari from the After The Beep exhibition, which asked artists to respond to each other's works by creating their own pieces within 48 hours. Lubnah Ansari
A work by Lubnah Ansari from the After The Beep exhibition, which asked artists to respond to each other's works by creating their own pieces within 48 hours. Lubnah Ansari
A work by Lubnah Ansari from the After The Beep exhibition, which asked artists to respond to each other's works by creating their own pieces within 48 hours. Lubnah Ansari

Art under pressure: UAE artists to showcase 48-hour artwork experiment in new show


Alexandra Chaves
  • English
  • Arabic

Remember the childhood game “telephone”? A chain of players take turns whispering messages to each other, until the person at the end of the line says the phrase out loud. Often, the original message has been altered somewhere along the string of exchanges, revealing the unreliability of memory or communication.

The game is the starting point for an experimental artistic prompt conceived by Dubai curators Sarah Daher and Anna Bernice. The result – more than 40 artworks from 38 artists made within 48 hours.

The works will be on view at the exhibition After The Beep, opening on Sunday at art space Satellite in Alserkal Avenue, Dubai.

In May, the curators released an open call for artists in the UAE via Instagram asking them to respond with new work by another artist. It started with one piece by Rami Farook, an Emirati artist and founder of Satellite, after which two others produced their "reactions" within 48 hours, eventually leading to two chains of creation.

During this period, the artists were only able to see the work that was made directly before theirs. The entire chain of artistic output will be revealed to them and visitors on the day of the exhibition opening.

The curators said that the initiative intends to “experiment with artistic production that immediately follows a creative response and impulse under time pressure, to challenge the notion of a perfectly produced artwork.”

The question now is whether conceptual links between artists can be formed on spur-of-the-moment, surface contact, and whether the element of anonymity, with creators unknown to each other, as well as time, can enrich or devalue the final work.

Both graduates of New York University Abu Dhabi, Daher focuses her research on social practices in Lebanon, where she is from, and the region, while Bernice runs an artistic platform for Filipino artists in the Gulf.

The list of participating artists is decidedly young, with a number having been part of programmes within UAE institutions such as the Salama bint Hamdan Emerging Artists Fellowship, Art Jameel Youth Assembly and Cultural Foundation Art Residency.

Artists include Sara Ahli, Aya Afaneh, Asma Khoory, Arthur de Oliveira, Anita Shishani, Sofia Basto, Yasmin Hamad, Viktor Ikeda, Mohamed Khalid, Lubnah Ansari, Lena Kassicieh, Shebi Niazi, Trixie Danielle and Solimar Miller.

'Champions'

Director: Manuel Calvo
Stars: Yassir Al Saggaf and Fatima Al Banawi
Rating: 2/5
 

If you go

The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Seattle from Dh5,555 return, including taxes.


The car
Hertz offers compact car rental from about $300 (Dh1,100) per week, including taxes. Emirates Skywards members can earn points on their car hire through Hertz.


The national park
Entry to Mount Rainier National Park costs $30 for one vehicle and passengers for up to seven days. Accommodation can be booked through mtrainierguestservices.com. Prices vary according to season. Rooms at the Holiday Inn Yakima cost from $125 per night, excluding breakfast.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company Profile

Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi

The specs

Engine: 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8

Transmission: nine-speed automatic

Power: 630bhp

Torque: 900Nm

Price: Dh810,000

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Wenger's Arsenal reign in numbers

1,228 - games at the helm, ahead of Sunday's Premier League fixture against West Ham United.
704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
7 - FA Cup triumphs, with three of those having come the last four seasons.
151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.

Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier

Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman

The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August

 

Group A

Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar

Group B

UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia

 

UAE group fixtures

Sunday Feb 23, 9.30am, v Iran

Monday Feb 25, 1pm, v Kuwait

Tuesday Feb 26, 9.30am, v Saudi

 

UAE squad

Ahmed Raza, Rohan Mustafa, Alishan Sharafu, Ansh Tandon, Vriitya Aravind, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Basil Hameed, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Ayaz, Zahoor Khan, Chirag Suri, Sultan Ahmed

Updated: July 20, 2021, 10:17 AM`