May 2023 Newsletter

QAIC invites you to join us on June 2nd for the soft opening of?Pearls of Wonder: a digital era. The multi-sensory exhibition features the work of five Qatari artists who explore the country’s rich and involved history of pearl diving and its related traditions and culture through a contemporary lens. Through video, audio and VR, the exhibition evokes a time when Qatar was the most important pearl producer in the world, harkening back to a time when the tradition of pearl diving and its subsequent trade shaped the economic trajectory of the region.

Pearls of Wonder: a digital era?is generously sponsored by Excelerate Energy.

Click this link to let us know you’re coming!??

QAIC is excited to invite its community to its 2023 Summer Festival. The festival, occurring on Saturday, June 24th, marks QAIC’s fourth anniversary and will celebrate Arab culture through art, food, film, comedy and storytelling. The celebration will mark the official opening of our newest exhibition, Pearls of Wonder: a digital era, highlight World Refugee Day, and feature an Arab Comedy Showcase, workshops and more.?Partners include UNCHR, Rola Z Productions, Short Film Lab and Nadine Zaza of CultureCrate. The event will be ticketed for adults and children 6-years-old and above.

Tickets are limited, click here to reserve yours now!?

IMPART Artists Grant 2022 Exhibition Opening. In May, QAIC was happy to launch our new IMPART Artists Exhibition, featuring the work of three diverse artists – Hoesy Corona, Nura Dhar and Roger Mokbel. Through different mediums, including drawing, photography and mixed-media installation, the artists address issues such as climate migration, human interventions in the natural environment and the relationship between tradition and labor. The evening included light refreshments, presentations and informal Q&A with IMPART artists Corona and Dhar. The 2022 IMPART Artists Exhibition will be on display through August 2023.

Read more about the event.?

QAIC recently hosted an embroidery class where guests learned from esteemed embroidery and textile researcher, curator and educator, Wafa Ghnaim, about the ins and outs of Palestinian embroidery. Students and observers learned how to stitch a popular pattern while gaining knowledge about the history of Palestinian embroidery. QAIC looks forward to hosting more opportunities like this in the future. We plan to continue offering interactive workshops and activities that show our D.C. community the beauty of the Arab and Islamic worlds. Read more about the event here.?

Look for our upcoming Perfumery Museum: DIY Scent Workshop in partnership with DIY Scent Studio coming this July.??

More Here.

QAIC hosted two Eid al-Fitr celebrations last month in partnership with the National Museum of Asian Art (NMAA) as well as the female Arab diplomatic community in D.C. We welcomed the greater D.C. community to a public, family-friendly Eid event which included henna art and a performance by Grammy-Award-winning oudist, Rahim AlHaj. Click?here?to read more.?

Just a few days later, QAIC, in partnership with Advancement of Arab & Gulf Women in America, hosted the United & Empowered: Arab and Gulf Women Leaders private Eid Reception. Amongst our guests, we were honored to receive women Ambassadors from Kuwait, Mauritania, Tunisia and the United States, as well as women from eleven different Arab nations.

Read more about this event here

QAIC’s third volume and first edition of A2Q for 2023 will be available within the next two weeks! This issue focuses on our theme of technology and the arts, with an in-depth look at our exhibitions and news from the Olfactory Art Delegation’s experience in Doha, Qatar.???

Featuring contributions by our QAIC community, QAIC Fellows, and partners, the latest issue of A2Q provides original, engaging content that complements QAIC’s online programming and institutional mission.??

QAIC was thrilled to join Doha Debates at the National Museum of Asian Art (NMAA) for two important conversations on the role of art and photography as a tool for education and change during NMAA’s week-long Centennial Portal set-up with Shared Studios. QAIC’s Executive Director and Director of Programs both joined Doha Debates Managing Director, Amjad Atallah, and NMAA Curator of Contemporary Art, Carol Huh, and Director of Programs, Nicole Dowd, in conversation with several artists and colleagues from Doha Debate’s team at Doha’s M7.??

QAIC participates in the Embassy of Qatar’s Passport D.C.: Around the World Embassy Tour presentation. On May 6th embassies throughout D.C. opened their doors to guests to share cultural activities, food and more. QAIC was honored to join the Embassy of Qatar once again to support their art and cultural activations. It was a delight to share our mission and work through the presentation of interactive activities for adults and children alike, with over 1,400 guests who passed through the building.??

Read more about the event here