National Geographic exhibition showcases the hidden stories of heritage of the Arab world

Thirty-one of the best images portraying the traditional crafts of the region, received during the 2014 National Geographic Abu Dhabi Moments Awards competition earlier this year, will be on display at The Galleria from Wednesday until October 7.

The photo by Zahra Alqatari that won the first prize in National Geographic's annual competition. Courtesy National Geographic

A wrinkled man weaves a basket from palm leaves at a heritage festival in Saudi Arabia, his peering eyes and nimble fingers captured in a picture for National Geographic’s annual competition this year.

This image is among 31 such photographs that portray the craft of skilled weavers, lantern-makers and glass-blowers – who were once the mainstay of the region's trading industry – in the Moments exhibition that is on display this Eid at The Galleria on Al Maryah Island from today until October 7.

A story of faces and Arabic crafts

This year, National Geographic Abu Dhabi, an Abu Dhabi Media partner, and Almarai encouraged photographers in the GCC, North Africa and Levant region to unearth hidden stories of heritage for the Moments Awards, which offered prizes including a trip to Spain and Portugal and US$10,000 (Dh36,729) worth of photography equipment.

The competition, in its fourth year, challenged photographers to feature the rich culture in the Arab world and explore a novel perspective on portraying heritage.

“There is so much traditional craftsmanship that exists around the region,” says Marlain Daniel, the director of branded content and special projects at National Geographic. “There is so much life out there that people don’t normally know about. So we thought bringing that to the fore would make the competition a lot more interesting. It also enhances the knowledge of the viewer about the culture of these countries.”

The participants

Organisers received 13,000 entries for the competition, which ran from April 1 to May 7. “Through the competition, we want to support Arab talent, promote creativity and celebrate our region’s culture,” says Daniel.

“We are seeing a growing interest in photography in the region and the calibre of the photographers who participate is very high. We want to promote that and at the same time highlight the lesser-known facts of the countries.”

The competition was judged by Alsaad Omar Almenhali, the editor-in-chief of National Geographic Al Arabiya, the National Geographic photographer Laura El Tantawy and Almarai's head of communications, Hussam Abdulqader.

“The judges were looking at the images not just from the technical point of view, but they needed to have an emotional connect, as well,” Daniel explains.

The winning entry

The Saudi national Zahra Alqatari’s Arab-weaver portrait was the overall winner of this year’s competition.

“The contrast of the light and shadows captured allows the human element to shine through in the photograph,” says Daniel.

Alqatari says she wanted to photograph the ancient craft of making baskets from khous [palm fronds] after they are pruned and coloured.

“The craftsman Abu Mohammed was so welcoming of everyone who wished to photograph him, so I took several photos and this was the most beautiful,” says Alqatari.

She says it was difficult to select just one photo for the competition. “But this particular one is an artistic representation of the craft and we can see the face of the craftsman, too. This sums up the theme perfectly.”

Dhafer Alshahry, from Saudi Arabia, claimed second place with a picture of a man from the eastern province of Saudi Arabia spinning wool. The Omani national Nasr Mubarak was third with his portrait of a traditional carpet maker.

• The Moments exhibition starts today and runs until October 7 at The Galleria on Al Maryah Island in Abu Dhabi