*Glimpses from Ehtifal Festival Family Day, presented by Serpentine Gallery and Qatar Museums Authority for Qatar UK 2013.     Courtesy: Serpentine Gallery/QMA; Photo credit: Plastiques.

Art, culture and camaraderie were the essence of Ehtifal, the
culmination of a special three-day event within Qatar UK 2013 Year of
Culture, at the Kensington Gardens in London. Denise Marray reports


There was a magical atmosphere in London’s Kensington Gardens at the weekend as families gathered to enjoy the open air festival, Ehtifal (Celebration), the culmination of a special three-day event within Qatar UK 2013 Year of Culture, and part of Shubbak: A Window on Contemporary Arab Culture. The family day was jointly organised by the Serpentine Gallery and Qatar Museums Authority (QMA).
Under brilliant blue skies amidst the lush greenery of the gardens, the children enjoyed a host of imaginative games cleverly designed to bring out their creativity in a fun-filled approach. The activities took place in and around the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, designed by the award winning Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto.
This was an inspired setting as its design of semi-transparent latticed steps combines beauty with a practical quality allowing the children to clamber over its structure while providing welcoming seats for the adults. Nearby the wonderful Fischli/Weiss sculpture, Rock on Top of Another Rock, on loan from the Qatar Museums Authority (QMA), made for a stunning sight.
The opening reception was honoured by the presence of Fahad Ibrahim AA al-Mushairi  Counsellor, Ali Ghanem A al-Fouhaid al-Hajri Counsellor, Rashid Abdulla al-Dehaimi  1st Secretary and Mubarak Ajlan M A al-Kuwari, 3rd Secretary, from the Embassy of the State of Qatar, London. A welcoming speech was made by Julia Peyton-Jones, co-director of the Serpentine Gallery.
A smiling Sheikha Fahad al-Thani stopped for a moment amidst her work at the event to talk to the Gulf Times: “I am so happy with the outcome today; seeing all the different cultures coming together is amazing!” she said. “We want everyone to use their imagination. You don’t have to be an artist to be creative -- there are many different ways to be creative and this is what we at the QMA are trying to promote.”
Speaking of the relationship between Qatar and the UK, she said: “The UK and Qatar have a long friendship. All the activities the UK has brought to Qatar and that Qatar has brought to the UK are definitely fruitful and I am sure these will continue in the years to come.”
An activity which especially absorbed the children centred on an abstract map of Qatar and the UK which showed some of the key landmarks and geography of both countries. These included, for example, the London Eye, Buckingham Palace, The Thames, the Arabian Gulf, Fanar, Qatar Islamic Cultural Center, the Museum of Islamic Art, West Bay, the Aspire Tower, Sidra trees and camels.
The children were encouraged to make models of their own ‘futuristic’ buildings and add them to the map. I think we may have seen some budding architects of the future judging by the response! One little boy happily designing his contribution to the skyline was Ethan Levy, who was at the event with his parents. He couldn’t spare much time for an interview but answered with an emphatic “Yes!” when asked if he was enjoying the day. His mother, Julia, added: “It’s a lovely way to spend the afternoon with our son.”
This was a truly multi-cultural event and it was a pleasure to see children of so many nationalities and cultures playing together happily in the sunshine. Cerise Kao, from Taiwan, was enjoying the event with her friends. She said: “It’s a perfect location for families and everyone, regardless of their age. Interacting with art and architecture is a great idea; there is a lovely harmony between the activities.”
Nasira Sheikh-Miller, Head of Learning Projects, QMA, surrounded by children busily creating their own artworks, described some of the activities. She said that the children would listen, for example, to a story and then use their own imaginations to create artworks or designs based on what they had heard or seen.
Within the Pavilion, the storyteller, Wendy Robinson, who studied Arabic at Edinburgh University, gave a spell-binding reading of her own special adaptation of Hamda and Fisaikra. As she told the story to her young audience, two illustrators created pictures based on adventures of the characters.  
Another activity which had many children absorbed was printing their names in Arabic and English. They were using for this purpose, a unique typescript that could produce lettering in Arabic and Latin scripts. “Through this typescript the two cultures are physically expressed,” explained Sheikh-Miller.
Alanoud Ahmed al-Attiya, Head of Special Projects, Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha, said she was delighted with the event. “It’s a celebration of the bilateral cultural ties between Qatar and the UK,” she commented.
She also described the highlights of the two pop-up Mathaf/Serpentine Gallery events of the preceding days which featured acclaimed artists such as the novelist Hisham Matar, Sudanese artist, Ibrahim El-Salahi (whose show opened at the Tate Modern, London, on  July 3 and runs until September 22),  and the virtuoso Egyptian violinist, Waeil Abo Bakr.
The Mathaf: Mapping Arab Literature in London, held at the London Review Bookshop, was chaired by Pop-Up Mathaf curator, Deena Chalabi. Contributions were made by the celebrated Sudanese artist Ibrahim El-Salahi, authors Hisham Matar, Ma’n Abu Taleb, Etel Adnan and Sophia al-Maria, publisher Margaret Obank, and Serpentine Gallery co-director, Hans Ulrich Obrist.
Speaking of Ibrahim El-Salahi, al-Attiya said: “We are extremely proud of him because he did his residencies in Qatar and painted the artworks which are on show in the Tate while he was in Qatar.” She was also very moved by the tribute paid by El-Salahi to his friend, the late Sudanese author Tayeb Salih. (The artist collaborated with Tayeb Salih on one of the covers for the quintessential modern Arab novel, ‘Season of Migration to the North’). “It was so beautiful and poignant and we were privileged to participate,” she said.
The event formed part of the Continuous City: Mapping Arab London, a series of talks, discussions and publications mapping relationships between London and Arab cities developed by Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha and the Serpentine Gallery’s Edgeware Road Project during Qatar UK 2013 Year of Culture.
There was also a wonderful evening of music at the Serpentine Gallery. The Palestinian audio/visual collective Tashweesh presented a specially commissioned multi-media performance mixing hip hop, visuals and soundscapes, and the virtuoso Egyptian violinist Waeil Abo Bakr, played a set with five musicians. Al-Attiya noted that members of the audience were especially moved when the soundtracks of classic Arab films by well-known Arab composers were played.
Back at the Ehtifal festival, the children gathered to make a little parade around the Pavilion carrying their artworks, some wearing fancy hats and accessories that they had designed taking inspiration from the stories they had heard.
Mukhtar Sanders, enjoying the day with his wife and two young daughters, commented: “We’re enjoying the connectivity. We’re very interested in Arab culture and Arab art.”
As the day ended and families made their way back home, they passed by a famous Kensington Gardens landmark – the statue of Peter Pan. The words of his creator, J M Barrie, came to mind: “All the world is made of faith, and trust, and pixie dust.”
Certainly, something of that magic and sentiment was in the air on this day when families from around the world came together for Ehtifal.



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