With the opening and renewal of many of its museums, Qatar witnessed a true cultural revival this year. For all the art enthusiasts out there, we hope you enjoy this list of Qatar’s museums and the exhibitions running for the coming few months.
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF QATARLocated in Doha, the National Museum of Qatar has been open to the public since March 2019. After relocating from its previous structure built in 1975, the new building was designed by architect Jean Nouvel who drew his inspiration from the desert rose crystal. Despite being relatively new, this museum hosts world-class exhibitions and houses countless treasures. One of our favourite exhibitions at the museum is Pipilotti Rist: Your Brain To Me, My Brain To You. A multisensory experience inviting visitors to embark on a journey of self-discovery with its use of symbolism, this exhibition is curated by Tom Eccles and Bouthayna Baltaji. It symbolises humanity’s collective unconscious and the power of the mind by using “pixels,” or 2,000 LED lights attached with cables all across the gallery. These lights are meant to represent memories, constantly firing and communicating with each other.
MATHAF: ARAB MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
Providing an Arab perspective on modern and contemporary art, Mathaf inspires new ideas, while promoting intercultural dialogue and supporting creativity in Qatar’s capital city of Doha. Besides boasting a permanent collection of over nine thousand pieces, the museum hosts a variety of temporary exhibitions as well. Here is one of the exciting exhibitions currently happening at the museum:
Currently showing at Mathaf, Invisible Labors is the first large-scale museum exhibition in the Middle East by Qatari-American artist, Sophia Al-Maria. Having coined the term “Gulf Futurism,” Al-Maria’s exhibition consists of various media artworks, including installations, commissioned soundscapes, and videos telling inspiring stories of survival and imagination. By inviting visitors into a dialogue around history, dreams, and futures, this outstanding artist hopes to reclaim ancient stories.
MUSEUM OF ISLAMIC ART
Located along the Doha Corniche, the Qatar Museum of Islamic Art was built off an island, per the instructions of the building’s architect, L.M. Pei. Boasting 18 rich galleries, the experience at the museum begins with the story of L.M. Pei, and takes visitors on a comprehensive trail helping to contextualise the world it represents with outstanding resources, making it accessible to all, regardless of age. The museum houses pieces from three continents and covers over 1400 years of Islamic history. Among the most popular exhibitions was Baghdad: Eye’s Delight, which celebrates the Iraqi capital as one of the most influential cities in Islamic history. Revealing its heritage as the capital city of the Abbasid Caliphate, this exhibition also highlights Baghdad’s heritage from the 20th century with its newfound prosperity after the discovery of oil in Iraq. It takes visitors along an imaginative tour across centuries, putting forward Baghdad’s role as a city of power, scholarship, and riches. Baghdad: Eye’s Delight also explores the industry and commerce of Abbasid Baghdad, as well as the development of modern industry during the 20th century. It celebrates the social fabric of Iraq, its cosmopolitan nature, and features pieces from 22 renowned institutions including the Louvre, the MET, and the Benaki Museum.
3-2-1 QATAR OLYMPIC AND SPORTS MUSEUM
Heaven on earth for sports enthusiasts, Qatar’s Olympic and Sports Museum includes seven galleries showcasing objects from around the world, beginning with the origins of sports to the present day. This museum is unique in that it reveals the cultural impact of sports in various ways; including showing the history and contemporary significance of the Olympic Games. With a hall entirely dedicated to iconic athletes, 3-2-1 showcases the inspiring journeys of global sports heroes. This museum also shows the development of sports in Qatar and hosts interactive experiences!
EXHIBITIONS & INSTALLATIONS
Labour Of Love: Embroidering Palestinian History
Labour of Love: Embroidering Palestinian History takes visitors on a journey of discovery of Palestinian embroidery, or tatreez, which “weaves” into the social, economic, and political fabric of Palestinian society through various historical epochs. Located at the Qatar Museums Gallery – Katara in the Katara Cultural Village, the exhibition explores the symbols of Palestinian dress and explores tatreez through various lenses. Looking at gender, commodification, class, and labour, visitors are invited to discover the different ways that traditions of Palestinian embroidery were shaped, and how embroidery shifted from a personal practice to a national symbol. Labour of Love is curated by Baha Jubeh, and includes pieces from the Qatar Museums as well as the Palestinian Museum.
Shadows Travelling on the Sea of the Day
A large-scale, site-specific and remote installation by renowned artist Olafur Eliasson, Shadows Travelling on the Sea of the Day is located in the Northern Heritage Sites area near Doha. It is comprised of a cluster of large mirrors and rings of steel and fiberglass along the sand dunes in the Qatari desert. With his artwork, Eliasson seeks to create a “sea” of interconnections through the entanglement of the landscape. The installation is a visual metaphor for humanity’s need to rekindle its relationship to the earth in the wake of a climate crisis.