- Khulood Khoory: “There is a lot to be discovered in Al Quoz Creative Zone. We want to ensure the public can enjoy a series of diverse engaging moments with the unique offerings Al Quoz has to offer
Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) have launched a rich cultural season at Al Quoz Creative Zone to celebrate creative talent and offer unique cultural and creative experiences. Visitors from the UAE and around the world, through the activity programme, will be treated to a variety of unique activities across multiple cultural and creative industries.
Khulood Khoory, Director of the Projects & Events Department at Dubai Culture, said: “The project to develop Al Quoz Creative Zone is in line with the vision of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the global capital of the creative economy. This is one of the most prominent projects that fall within the framework of Dubai Culture’s commitments to cement the emirate’s position on the global cultural and artistic scene.”
Khoory affirmed that the events programme for Al Quoz Creative Zone, launched by Dubai Culture and programmed by Alserkal Advisory, motivates the public to engage with Dubai ‘s creative industry, adding: “Through this programme, Dubai Culture continues the project to develop and activate Al Quoz Creative Zone, with deliberate steps that reflect its strategy aimed at strengthening Dubai’s position as the global capital of the creative economy by 2026. The zone offers a wide range of creative and inspiring projects that support creatives and helps achieve their aspirations, which confirms the uniqueness of Dubai’s environment and its suitability for creatives in all fields.”
Hidden Gems
The activity programme for Al Quoz Creative Zone begins with a wide range of cultural and artistic activities on the evening of Saturday, October 29, with the ‘Quoz Photo Trail’ , organised in partnership with Gulf Photo Plus, providing aspiring photographers with a photo-walk that hovers between day and night, taking participants on a photography journey from the bustle of industrial activity to the calm of dusk by inviting participants to reconsider the area’s industrial blocks in their full creative identity.
In addition to the photo trail, the ‘Quoz Quad: Spoken Word’ activity will take place, offering an evening of competitive slam poetry performed in the ring at Round10 Boxing and moderated by Danabelle Gutierrez. Borrowing from the grit and combat of a venue accustomed to rowdy fight nights, for one evening five poets will go head-to-head in two competitive rounds of poetic performance.
Through the Nomadic Cinema event hosted by Raw Coffee Company on 30 October, Dubai Culture opens the eyes of visitors to the masterpieces of cinema, with a show that brings back the movie Godzilla (1954), directed by Ishiro Honda. A sad human drama that was made in Japan at a time when it was healing the wounds of the atomic bombs of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This event will express the visions of young people and filmmakers, and give the audience a special insight into human societal issues.
Dubai Culture has also allocated within the programme a space for small and medium enterprises from 1 November – 23 December, with the aim of enabling them to familiarise the public and visitors to the region with their work, ideas, various innovations and successes.
Oration
Visitors to The Courtyard in Al Quoz, on 12 November, will be able to experience PechaKucha presentations, a presentation method that allows the display of 20 electronic slides, each of which is allocated only 20 seconds, for interesting, concise presentations. Retail pop-ups will also be clustered around the PechaKucha event, capturing a selection of the best and quirkiest of retailer offerings in Al Quoz Creative Zone, allowing them to display their creative products to the public.
On 24 November, Dubai Culture will also organise the Creative Entrepreneurship Accelerator, a teaser version of larger activations to follow in 2023. It will be a cross between a lab and a networking platform where keynote speakers will dot a programme that enables to address the inventory of obstacles and successes experienced by creative start-ups today. Another retail pop-up will also be held in conjunction with this event
Food Culture
Food lovers are catered for in the programme. The Food Trail in Al Quoz event, which is organised in cooperation with Amateur Foodie on 26 November, will witness a unique tour of cafeterias in Al Quoz of different international foods that express the diversity and richness of culinary culture in Dubai and the UAE.
Dubai Culture will also celebrate the World Cup via the ‘Quoz Quad: Freestyle Football’ event, in providing sports fans with the opportunity to showcase their talents and performance artistry with sport by bringing the community together for a freestyle competition.
To expand the scope of social communication and exchange of ideas, the Authority has arranged on 13 December, in Alserkal Avenue, the Quoz Social event, which provides an opportunity for creative talent to exchange ideas and visions, expand the scope of innovation, and share it with the public.
On 17 December, film lovers will return to the Nomadic Cinema event, which will host a ciné concert that merges a classic film with experimental music performed live in one of the unexpected spaces of Al Quoz Creative Zone, accompanied with yet another retail pop-up.
The Al Quoz Creative Zone project aims to establish an integrated creative zone that meets the requirements of creatives from all over the world, and works to provide a suitable environment for creators in all fields to enable them to succeed and develop, and to contribute positively to the creative and cultural fabric of Dubai. It also aims to house 20,000 creatives by 2026.
