Call for Submissions - Mawtini (My Home)

© Hind Mezaina 

Tashkeel, the Dubai based gallery and studio space has announced a call for submissions for their next exhibition called Mawtini, which means My Home in Arabic. Submission date ends on 18th February 2012. The exhibition will run from 6th March - 30th April 2012.

I am very interested in this theme and looking forward to seeing what gets selected. Thinking of taking part myself. Here's the full brief. Good luck to everyone that submits their work. 

“Home, the spot of earth supremely blest, a dearer, sweeter spot than all the rest” - Robert Montgomery
 
We are living in an increasingly complex world in which barriers and borders are being broken down and where conventional concepts of “homeland” and “belonging” are being challenged. This is of particular relevance in the United Arab Emirates, where almost 80% of the population is living away from their so-called home country, and yet for so many of these people, this is truly “home”.
 
Within this context, we would like to invite both local and international artists resident in the UAE to explore the notion of what constitutes “home”. Do you consider “home” to be a country, a city, a particular building or place with a personal history and memories? Is home defined by the country of birth, country of residence, country of choice or by nationality or is it the place where one is, or where ones heart longs to be or where one simply feels that they belong?
 

Submission guidelines:

• The call is open to all contemporary artists living in the UAE, creating original work using any medium.
• Artists can submit up to 3 works, a series is considered as one work.
• Previously exhibited artworks will not be accepted. Artworks presented must be made specifically for this call.
• Application and images must be submitted not later than 18 February 2012
• Shortlisted artists will be informed by email by 27 February 2012
• Artists will be responsible for the framing and mounting of works selected for the exhibition before delivering it to Tashkeel.
• Tashkeel reserves the right not to exhibit any work that differs substantially from the initial application or is deemed unsuitable for exhibition.

You can download the application form here. For more information, you can send an email to tashkeel@tashkeel.org.

www.tashkeel.org

Museum ME - call for submissions

Construction by Hind Mezaina

Museum ME is a new exhibition that will be held at thejamjar from 14th-21st October that  aims to present a snap shot of the United Arab Emirates and the shared experiences of its community by inviting everyone to submit an object which relates to the UAE’s history.

It's your chance to be part of a unique and special exhibition, so I urge you to look through your old things and find that special something that can be part of this exhibition.

The UAE is a place of multiple nationalities and cultures and it would be great to see this reflected through objects that can tell a story and show a shared history of a place that many think of as transcient.

Curated by Sonia Brewin (artist) and Rachael Brown (Head of Special Projects at thejamjar), they will select 100 objects and present them in categories of history, domesticity and art, placing sentimental tokens on the same level as historical artifact, weaving together the personal fragments into a cumulative patchwork tapestry of the UAE’s identity.

I sat with Sonia and Rachael recently to talk about this exhibition and asked them what inspired this idea, what they hope to achieve with this exhibition and its importance as a community project. (This is my first video interview for the blog and I plan to do more of this - so please excuse the sound quality and I promise I will lower my voice in future recordings.) 

I am very excited about this exhibition (I was also thrilled they used one of my photos to advertise the event - yes a bit of shameless self promotion here). I love the fact that this is open to everyone in the country to take part and not exclusive to the art community and I can't wait to see the final selection.



How to take part?
Send the following to: museumuae@thejamjardubai.com by 1st October 2010.
- An image (JPG) of the object being submitted.
- A description of its importance to the UAE in no more than 150 words
- Measurements in centimeters, height x width x depth
- Estimate of object’s age

Related articles:
TimeOut Dubai  
Gulf News
 

www.thejamjardubai.com