Latest news with #LondonDesignBiennale2025
Observer
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Observer
Oman participates in London Design Biennale 2025
LONDON: The Sultanate of Oman is participating in London Design Biennale 2025, which runs until June 29. Oman's contribution is represented by the creative artwork Memory Grid by engineer and designer Haitham al Busafi, which won the award for best design at this global exhibition. The participation aligns with the efforts of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth to showcase Omani culture globally and transform Oman's cultural landscape into a hub of creativity and cultural diversity, in line with the executive plan of the Cultural Strategy 2021–2040. Ibrahim bin Saif Bani Oraba, Assistant Director-General of Arts, emphasised that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth has developed its vision through ambitious plans to position Oman as a leader in various cultural fields internationally. This stems from the foundations of Oman Vision 2040 and the Cultural Strategy, which serves as a strategic framework for the nation's cultural endeavours. Through its participation in the London Design Biennale 2025, the ministry ensured a distinctive presence in every detail, including a pivotal role for Omani youth in this global platform. Engineer and designer Haitham al Busafi was selected to create the artwork, while Zawraq Group — a youth-led small and medium enterprise — was appointed as the pavilion's evaluator. Eng Al Busafi expressed profound pride and gratitude upon receiving the Best Design Award for Memory Grid as Oman's representative at the London Design Biennale 2025. He described the moment as a historic achievement for Oman, embodying the nation's heritage and contemporary vision where tradition meets innovation. He explained that Memory Network is an immersive installation featuring transparent, machine-crafted replicas of traditional Omani pottery arranged in a pattern reminiscent of data centres. Meanwhile, Za'eema al Adawi stated that selecting Zawraq Group as the artistic evaluator was both an opportunity and a tool for youth empowerment, enabling their representation at this major artistic forum. - ONA
Observer
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Observer
Omani pavilion wins award at London Design Biennale
Muscat: Oman's pavilion – titled 'Memory Grid' – won the Best Design Award at the opening of the London Design Biennale 2025 last week. The recognition marks a significant achievement for the sultanate of Oman in its debut participation at the global cultural platform. The pavilion has been designed by multidisciplinary artist Haitham al Busafi and curated by the Zawraq Collective. Commissioned by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, the project reflects the ministry's broader efforts to promote artistic and intellectual creativity among Omani youth. 'Memory Grid' explores the ideas of memory, value and preservation in a fast-changing world. Visitors are invited to observe how perception shifts with perspective, with meaning transforming depending on how closely or distantly the work is viewed. Drawing inspiration from Oman's pottery traditions, the installation reimagines ancient clay vessels – once vital for carrying water and connecting communities – as symbols of cultural memory. The pavilion presents these traditional forms as metaphors for protecting what is valued, both in the past and present. Haitham al Busafi with his award In a modern context, the installation proposes that data is the new essential resource – requiring safeguarding much like water once did. Through the immersive experience, visitors are encouraged to reflect on how heritage, knowledge and identity are passed through generations. The project represents how traditional symbols can guide modern questions about preservation. The win at the Biennale highlights Oman's increasing engagement with contemporary art and design on a global stage. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth said the pavilion represents the strategic direction to elevate creative output by young Omanis to international platforms.
Muscat Daily
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Muscat Daily
Omani pavilion wins award at London Design Biennale
Muscat – Oman's pavilion – titled 'Memory Grid' – has won the Best Design Award at the opening of the London Design Biennale 2025 last week. The recognition marks a significant achievement for the sultanate in its debut participation at the global cultural platform. The pavilion has been designed by multidisciplinary artist Haitham al Busafi and curated by the Zawraq Collective. Commissioned by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, the project reflects the ministry's broader efforts to promote artistic and intellectual creativity among Omani youth. Haitham al Busafi 'Memory Grid' explores the ideas of memory, value and preservation in a fast-changing world. Visitors are invited to observe how perception shifts with perspective, with meaning transforming depending on how closely or distantly the work is viewed. Drawing inspiration from Oman's pottery traditions, the installation reimagines ancient clay vessels – once vital for carrying water and connecting communities – as symbols of cultural memory. The pavilion presents these traditional forms as metaphors for protecting what is valued, both in the past and present. In a modern context, the installation proposes that data is the new essential resource – requiring safeguarding much like water once did. Through the immersive experience, visitors are encouraged to reflect on how heritage, knowledge and identity are passed through generations. The project represents how traditional symbols can guide modern questions about preservation. The win at the biennale highlights Oman's increasing engagement with contemporary art and design on a global stage. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth said the pavilion represents the strategic direction to elevate creative output by young Omanis to international platforms.
Gulf Today
01-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Gulf Today
Saudi Arabia returns to London Design Biennale with Good Water exhibition
Saudi Arabia returns to London Design Biennale 2025 with an exhibition titled Good Water (June 5 – 29) at Somerset House, London. Commissioned by Saudi Arabia's Architecture and Design Commission, the pavilion is curated by design collective including Alaa Tarabzouni, Aziz Jamal, Dur Kattan and Fahad bin Naif. They bring together their multidisciplinary backgrounds in architecture, design and the arts, for the exhibition that questions, disrupts, and reimagines systems of access and distribution of water, and people's relationship with it. The curatorial concept of Good Water responds to the theme of the Biennale, 'Surface Reflections', which explores how ideas are fuelled by internal experiences, external influences and personal histories. The Saudi Pavilion is centered by a sabeel – a free water fountain, and a symbol of hospitality, deeply rooted in the Saudi Arabian tradition. Historically, the fountains are scattered across the country, providing water to passersby, signifying a communal ethos of generosity. Yet, within the context of the exhibition, the sabeel is no longer only a gesture of goodwill. It asks the question: Who pays for 'free' water? What does it truly cost? And, crucially, if the burden falls on someone else, does it not, in some form, radiate outwards to cost everyone? Water tank on a ledge, photo. According to the show, the sabeel, as a concept, carries a deep contradiction: while it offers water freely, the reality is that the water is not free at all. Every sip is made possible by a complex system of labour, energy, and economics. Potable water is extracted through costly processes, placed in plastic bottles, or transported through networks that demand tireless maintenance and oversight, since the water is meant for consumption. The cost is distributed across various actors, including governments, corporations and workers, among others, but ultimately, it is a cost that some, if not all, must bear. Even those who do not pay for water directly, still share the long-term consequences of extraction/desalination, branded plastic bottles and containers, transport and distribution. The sabeel in the pavilion, therefore, is more than a functional object; it is a symbol of interdependence and highlights the tension between generosity and cost, accessibility and consequence. Alaa Tarabzouni, Aziz Jamal, Dur Kattan and Fahad bin Naif said that 'the pavilion uses familiar elements to draw attention to water's hidden economies, encouraging the visitors to drink with awareness, to acknowledge the price, and to understand that while the cost of free (good) water is borne by someone else, it truly costs everyone. In cities where sabeel are commonplace, their presence is often taken for granted, their function seen as a simple act of public service. But by relocating this familiar structure to the London Design Biennale, where water scarcity is not an everyday concern, we reframe it as an object of scrutiny. We aim to force a shift in perception, making the invisible visible, the passive active.' Alaa Tarabzouni and Aziz Jamal The Saudi National Pavilion is a flagship initiative of the Architecture and Design Commission, supported by the Ministry of Culture; it reflects Saudi Arabia's commitment to contributing to international design discourse and promoting sustainable, innovative solutions. Dr. Sumaya Al-Sulaiman, CEO of Architecture and Design Commission, said: 'Saudi Arabia's return to the London Design Biennale is a new exciting chapter in our commitment to design as a powerful tool for dialogue and cultural exchange and we look forward to engaging in conversations on creativity, innovation, and systems thinking during our second participation in the London Design Biennale.' All the artists hail from Saudi Arabia. Alaa Tarabzouni has a career that spans over ten years in the arts and culture sector. While her background in architecture informs her approach, her main focus is context, which she regards as her primary medium and muse. Her work explores the relationship between art, its environment, and the viewer's experience. Aziz Jamal is a multidisciplinary artist known for an incongruous and experimental approach, blending humour, material and context, to create works that merge the individual with the collective. His practice spans sculpture, video, drawing, ceramics, audio, digital prints and installation, often using found and unconventional materials to encourage new narratives. Jamal's work explores themes of domesticity, time and consumerism, creating a dialogue between the familiar and unfamiliar. Dur Kattan and Dur Kattan Dur Kattan is a conceptual artist whose passion for non-traditional and interdisciplinary programmes has led her on a journey where she crafts artwork that establishes strong connections with viewers. She is particularly drawn to public art and art forms that embrace interactivity, enabling individuals to engage actively with artistic experience. Fahad bin Naif is an emerging artist, whose subject matter derives from examining the urban fabric of his home city, Riyadh. Employing multiple mediums in his interdisciplinary practice, Bin Naif creates large-scale installations and interventions, video works, photography and design, driven by his research of the urban landscape. His innovative design approach earned him the Bartlett's Gold Prize (2017) and in 2020, he won the third cycle of the prestigious Ithra Art Prize. The Architecture and Design Commission, established in 2020, is one of eleven commissions under the Ministry of Culture, Saudi Arabia, representing disciplines including architecture, urban design and planning, landscape architecture, interior design, graphic design, and industrial design. The Ministry of Culture oversees eleven sector-specific commissions; it is leading a cultural transformation to develop a deep and sustainable creative ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.
Leaders
27-03-2025
- Business
- Leaders
Saudi Arabia to Participate at London Design Biennale with ‘Good Water' Pavilion
Saudi Arabia will take part at the London Design Biennale 2025 with 'Good Water' Exhibition at Somerset House, according to Arab News. Set to run from June 5-29, the exhibition highlights the hidden costs and economies of water, inviting visitors to reconsider their relationship with water. Curated by a multidisciplinary design team including Alaa Tarabzouni, Aziz Jamal, Dur Kattan and Fahad bin Naif, Saudi Arabia's pavilion will showcase several artworks revolving around water. 'The pavilion uses familiar elements to draw attention to water's hidden economies,' said the participants Tarabzouni, Jamal, Kattan and bin Naif in a joint statement. Interestingly, the artworks will challenge the traditional concepts of access, distribution and the value of water under the supervision of the Architecture and Design Commission. 'Saudi Arabia's return to the London Design Biennale marks another chapter in our commitment to design as a tool for dialogue and cultural exchange. We look forward to engaging in conversations on creativity, innovation, and systems thinking during our fourth participation in the event,' Sumaya Al-Sulaiman, CEO of the Architecture and Design Commission, said. The Saudi pavilion will feature a sabeel, a traditional water fountain deeply rooted in Saudi heritage. This fountain serves as a symbol of hospitality and generosity in the Saudi culture offering complimentary water to anyone who passes by. In the light of this, 'Good Water' reintroduces the idea of the fountain, not only as a gesture of goodwill, but also as a significant question: Who pays for 'free' water? What is its true cost? 'The pavilion encourages visitors to drink with awareness, to acknowledge the price, and to recognize that while the cost of good water may be borne by someone else, it ultimately affects everyone. By relocating the sabeel to the London Design Biennale—where water scarcity is not an immediate concern—we reframe it as an object of scrutiny, making the invisible visible and the passive active,' the statement added. The Kingdom previously participated at the 4th London Design Biennale in 2023 through a pavilion titled 'Woven' curated by Ruba Alkhaldi and Lojain Rafaa. Related Topics: Tourism Minister Explores Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Jeddah Jeddah's Islamic Arts Biennale Lights Up Ramadan Nights AlMadar at Islamic Arts Biennale Explores Islamic Scientific Heritage Short link : Post Views: 19
