Now you can tour the Portrait of a Nation II: Beyond Narratives exhibition anytime, anywhere. In a first-of-its-kind event, the digital launch of the landmark exhibition allows you to visit—and revisit—more than 100 artworks by 62 pioneering and emerging artists that shaped the nation’s visual arts landscape. Through in-depth descriptions and interactive audio guides, the immersive experience takes you on a journey through the collaboration and inspiration that narrate the story of the UAE’s impressive rise in the art scene.
Portrait of a Nation II: Beyond Narratives curated by Maya El Khalil and co-curated by Roxane Zand was inaugurated by HE Sheikh Shakhbout bin Nahyan Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of State, on 21 January. More than 100 key artworks, 15 of which were commissioned by Abu Dhabi Festival, arranged in five central themes reflect the innovative spirit of the artists who paved the way for the UAE’s artistic evolution over the past five decades. Throughout its three-month run, the exhibition also hosted panel discussions, workshops, and a variety of community and educational events, giving visitors insight into the inspiration behind the artworks that led to the nation’s remarkable development.
Portrait of a Nation II, the book companion to Abu Dhabi Festival 2022’s flagship Portrait of a Nation II: Beyond Narratives exhibition, guides readers through the remarkable transformation of the UAE’s art history, tracing the path chartered by 62 pioneering artists who have shaped the UAE’s visual arts scene as it unfolded over the past 50 years. Edited by co-curator Roxane Zand, the book captures each of the more than 100 artworks, 17 of which are commissions, in vivid photography, with messages from curator Maya El Khalil, prominent writers and the very artists who helped lead the nation on its transformative journey through the arts.
Art of the Emirates II, edited by Melissa Gronlund, is an unprecedented conversation with the artists and the leading protagonists who have written and continue to write the history of art in the Emirates. Through in-depth interviews, roundtable discussions and essays, the sequel to the first edition portrays the driving forces behind the nation’s visual arts scene – those who have witnessed history and carry the country’s inspiring message, vision and compelling story of creativity and innovation through their achievements.
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