For Qatar Museums’ former CEO Ahmad al-Namla, art and culture are not only central to how a country tells its story, but also an essential means of communication between East and West. In the latest Evolution Nation video series, he describes them as a "beating heart” and an "artery of communication” between people, helping societies better understand and accept one another.
Nearly four years after Qatar welcomed the world for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, al-Namla looks back on a defining period for the country’s cultural sector and the years of preparation that helped introduce international audiences to Qatar’s history, identity and heritage.
Between 2018 and 2022, he said Qatar Museums undertook important preparations to ensure its museums and exhibitions were ready for the FIFA World Cup, with a focus on highlighting Qatari identity and presenting key collections and projects to international audiences.
Al-Namla said the World Cup provided an opportunity not only to welcome visitors to Qatar but also to share the stories and objects that speak to the country’s history and its connections with the wider world.
Among the works he remembers most fondly is the Baroda Carpet at the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ), an extraordinary 19th-century object measuring 2.64 metres long and 1.74 metres wide. According to NMoQ, the carpet is woven with silk thread on a natural deerskin base and adorned with more than 1.5mn natural marine pearls, known as "Basra” pearls, sourced from the coasts of Qatar and Bahrain, alongside rubies, emeralds, sapphires and diamonds.
"One of the most important works that I love very much displayed at the National Museum of Qatar is the Baroda Carpet. For me, the Baroda Carpet is an icon. It was made in the 19th century and contains a million and a half pearls, most of which are believed to be from Qatar's riches, which was very famous for pearls at that time. "It was made to be a carpet placed on the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, but unfortunately it never reached its final destination.”
Apart from individual objects and exhibitions, al-Namla sees art and culture as essential to communication between societies and to creating greater understanding across different histories, perspectives and traditions. "Art and culture are a very important focus and a beating heart and the importance of the role they play is that they are the artery of communication between East and West and between human beings. So, it is very important that we understand and accept the culture of others,” he pointed out.
That sense of connection, he said, was particularly visible during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, when Qatar welcomed visitors from across the globe. For al-Namla, the experience was closely linked to one of Qatar’s most deeply rooted traditions: hospitality.
"One of the most important experiences for me was the experience of hosting the guests of the World Cup, preparing the conditions for them, because it reflects one of our most important heritages in Qatar, which is welcoming guests and honouring them.”
The Evolution Nation video series forms part of Qatar Creates, the cultural movement by QM. Launched to mark 50 years since the establishment of the original NMoQ in 1975, the campaign celebrates the people, institutions and ideas that have contributed to Qatar’s cultural development over the past five decades.
Through personal stories and recollections, Evolution Nation profiles individuals who have helped shape Qatar’s artistic, cultural and historic landscape. The series is available on the Qatar Creates YouTube channel and across Qatar Museums’ social media platforms, giving audiences a closer look at the people behind the country’s continuing cultural, creative and sporting evolution.