The Ras Al-Khaimah Fine Arts Festival was founded ten years ago by a group of roughly 20 artists and curators in the UAE’s Ras Al-Khaimah, relying primarily on donations and volunteer assistance to promote the emirate’s burgeoning arts and cultural sector. A decade later, the festival has evolved into a two-month-long collaborative space with a display of more than 150 artworks from over 45 countries, walking tours, workshops, and activities, nestled in and around the historic pearling village of Al-Jazirah Al-preserved Hamra’s coral stone and mud houses, marketplace, and fort.
The festival’s 10th edition, titled “The Journey,” runs till March 31 and honours the country’s long-standing efforts by creatives to create a platform for cultural exchange and artistic development while simultaneously commemorating the UAE’s 50th anniversary.
Large-scale images and paintings printed on weather-resistant material, as well as interactive installations and sculptures, line the sandy paths and buildings of the venue, delving into their creators’ ideas of lineage, migration, national identity, and personal growth. They also chart the Emirates’ evolution from Bedouin tribes and the establishment of the Trucial States to the melting pot of cultures and technology that it is today.
“As one of the festival’s founding members, I recall a period when we had to rely on contributions and volunteers to put on the event. No one knew where Ras Al-Khaimah was when we built up a festival website. With the tremendous expansion of the emirate over the last ten years, we now have artists from all over the world exhibiting at the festival. Suqrat bin Bisher, festival director, told Arab News, “The destination that we are at today, both as a country that is continuously attempting to preserve its history and traditions and as a festival that has made its mark on the international cultural scene, is deserving the voyage.”
Abdullah Lutfi, whose distinctive black and white drawings depict the UAE’s skyline and landscapes; Medyyah Al-Tamimi, whose photographs and writings capture the city’s everyday bustle; and filmmaker Sara Al-Hashimi, with her thought-provoking documentaries on the region, are among the Emirati artists presenting at this year’s festival.
Residents’ images of the Emirates, such as Filipino photographer Mario Cardenas’ “Emirates Legacy” series’ dramatic black and white composite portrait of several generations of Emiratis, offer a rare perspective of self-discovery among the national population.
The event includes two satellite exhibition sites in the UAE’s highest peak, Jebal Jais, and Al-Marjan Island’s Open Park, in addition to the cultural village. Workshops, tours, entertainment, and events are also on the schedule, and will take place every weekend until the festival ends.