Total Arts at the Courtyard in Dubai invites everyone to admire Dreamscape, an immersive installation presented by Hind bin Demaithan Al Qemzi, Shaqayeq Arabi, Carolina Cortesi, Rand Al-Hadethi, and Dariush Zandi. On view until the 18th of December, 2023, the installation celebrates the nurturing power of our planet and draws our attention to the reverence it deserves as a key element of human existence.
Dreamscape creates the intangible space which links reality and dreams, conscious and subconscious, and what has survived and what has been lost. A sensory experience, the installation is composed of several elements: translucent curtains, projected Imagery, suspended sculptural elements, movement, soundscape, poetry, lights, and shadows. The exhibition also features black-and-white photographs of the Emirati landscape.
About the participants
Hind bin Demaithan Al Qemzi is an artist, video composer, curator, and creative consultant. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Visual Arts from Zayed University (Dubai) and pursued her education at California Institute of the Arts (USA), where she received her MFA in Theater and Integrated Media. Through her immersive projects, Al Qemzi conveys the rich and diverse cultural tapestry of the Emirates. Her video compositions reflect on the space between us, our thoughts, layers of earth, and beyond through moving images imprinted on fabric and threads.
Shaqayeq Arabi earned her bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design from Al-Zahra University (Tehran). She also has a BFA from the University of Valenciennes (France) and an MFA from Sorbonne University (France). Arabi’s art practice encompasses painting, sculpting, and creating large-scale installations. At the core of her art are image, sound, smell, and the sensitivity of her surroundings. Creating a tangible and touchable reality out of emotions and sensations, the artist’s immersive environments usually incorporate found objects and natural elements: metal mesh, wire, paper, film, glue, twigs, plants, wood, and paint. Natural materials in the artist’s work have a particular resonance for the artist because of their ability to bend yet resist external forces. They also symbolise the precarity of living in the Middle East.
Carolina Cortesi is an Italian professional dancer and choreographer who graduated from Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance with a bachelor’s degree in Ballet and Contemporary Dance. After that, she moved to Pilsen and Prague, where she was a soloist dancer in the Ballet Company. Later, Cortesi went to Helsinki and became part of the Finnish National Ballet, then she relocated to Bern as a guest member of the Bern Ballet. Currently, Cortesi resides in Dubai and stars as the main character in Franco Dragone’s show La Perle.
Rand Al-Hadethi is a journalist, creative writer, and poet who lives and works in Dubai. She received her bachelor’s degree in Digital Production and Storytelling (Film) from the American University in Dubai (AUD). Al-Hadethi’s works have been published in regional and international magazines including GQ Middle East, Highsnobiety, Azeema, and Notion, to name a few.
Dariush Zandi is a renowned photographer, architect, author, and the founder of Total Design (a multi-disciplinary creative studio) and the Total Arts gallery. He studied architecture and urban design in New York City (USA) and later moved to the UAE, where he joined Dubai Municipality as a Senior Architect and Town Planner in 1981. Zandi worked on the restoration of historical buildings and their conversion into museums (Sheikh Saeed House, Naif Fort, and Dubai Museum). In addition, he created urban master plans for the Dubai Emirate and worked on projects for famous landmarks.
Zandi studied photography and filmmaking in NYC and California (USA). He also taught several courses in this field at different institutions and universities. Through his lens, he documents everyday life, his extensive travels, adventures, excursions, and Emirati nature. Zandi’s numerous photographs have been featured in publications and photo agencies around the globe, such as the Encyclopedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World and Architectural Heritage of the Gulf.
To learn more about Dreamscape, please visit Total Arts’ official website.
You might also be interested in looking at the Every You – Every Me installation and attending Rooted in Drawing by Elizabeth Dorazio.
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