For visitors and residents seeking a cultural escape from the summer heat, Qatar Museums is offering a diverse art lineup, featuring internationally acclaimed cinema, a deep dive into national art history, and a tribute to a pioneering Qatari artist.Qatar’s rich summer arts season is anchored at Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, guiding visitors on a journey from international cinema to deeply personal Qatari heritage.According to QM, the offerings provide a comprehensive experience, covering international contemporary issues, the development of Qatar’s national identity through art, and the vision of one of its most important modern artists.From a highly acclaimed premiere at the Venice Biennale, ‘Your Ghosts Are Mine: Expanded Cinemas, Amplified Voices’ brings the work of more than 40 filmmakers and artists from the Arab world, Africa, and Southeast Asia to Doha.This immersive exhibition, produced by QM in collaboration with multiple partners including the Doha Film Institute and the future Art Mill Museum, explores contemporary experiences of community, exile, and the perils of crossing borders. It will be on view until August 9.Visitors navigate 10 distinct sections with themes like deserts, ruins, and the cosmos, viewing works that blend fiction with documentary and modernity with tradition.Shifting focus from the global to the national, ‘Qatar: Close to My Soul’ exhibition offers a poetic journey through the country’s modern art history.Drawn from the collection of Sheikh Abdulla bin Ali al-Thani, it showcases a broad overview of Qatari art from the late 1960s onwards. Its title is inspired by the 1975 poem and song Allah Ya O’mri Qatar, reflecting a deep love for the homeland.‘Qatar: Close to My Soul’ is organised into three sections, exploring how artists drew inspiration from the landscape, portrayed society, and experimented with abstraction and hurruffiya (art incorporating Arabic letterforms), providing deep insight into the nation’s cultural evolution. This exhibition also runs until August 9. The season’s offerings culminate in a deeply personal and historic tribute: "Wafa al-Hamad: Sites of Imagination”.This is the first-ever comprehensive museum exhibition dedicated to the 40-year career of the pioneering Qatari artist, educator, and designer Wafa al-Hamad (1964–2012).The retrospective celebrates al-Hamad’s underrepresented role in the development of modern Qatari art, presenting her unique style that integrated Arabic calligraphy, dreamlike optical illusions, and vibrant abstraction.Featuring 23 pieces from Mathaf’s collection, the exhibition highlights her distinct interpretation of Gulf modernism, as seen in key works like Atlal (The Tower of Barzan) (1985) and Henna Night (1992). Art enthusiasts will have the chance to explore this show until August 9.
June 17, 2025 | 01:03 AM