Clinging to museums

On Monday, I had a lovely trip to Dubai. This adjustable boomerang chair was outside in the Dubai Design District, lots of identical glass buildings and fancy looking young trendy folks. Saw a couple of shows and then wanted to run away to something a little toothier. So I went to the old souk (marketplace) along the creek and promptly got ripped off with bags of scarves and spices. I still kind of want to go back and get safflower petals and indigo powder, NOT used for dye apparently though that's all I know them for.

The final stop was the perfume house at Al Shindagha, the old section of the city that has a museum with separate houses. I was sad that the scent part of the museum was disabled but the info was great. Perfume made from specific extractions of whale poop that then has to cure in saltwater?! Incredible.

Though I wanted to get back to the hotel, I ended up doing a quick tour of the handicrafts house, and love these sandals that I think are made of date palm fiber but don't quote me because the tour guide really whisked me through. The next house I went to was for traditional medicine and that tour guide was the opposite, took forever. Then I got lost trying to find my way in the non-gridded area with a zillion little houses but eventually found my driver, who gave me great advice and comfort about navigating the culture here.

The next morning, I had a wonderful meeting with Nadia, the dean of the college of fine arts and design of the University of Sharjah, who had found me at my exhibit. She waited for me to return from a break because she had to find out who was here from Cleveland, the city where she had gotten engaged years ago. It turns out that the school has a papermaking studio that is unused because no one knows how to use it, equipped with a beater, press, and drybox by Dave Reina! Insane. She introduced me to Izmer, the chair of fine arts, and Elham, who is also a papermaker who has used this space a bit for the students.

For a space that no one knows how to use, it's decently equipped besides not having enough vats.

Missing the plastic shields but otherwise great! Next to the sliding door that used to lead to an outdoor space but now goes into a hallway that was built to expand the school.

It always feels crazy to have such good equipment not being used, when I would LOVE to own it but do not have the budget. After returning back to the hotel, I tried to catch up on rest and get a tiny afternoon nap before heading out to the exhibit I have to man every night. But it was fun to get some traditional food to share with the two women whose job it is to be there from 4:30 to 10pm.

This morning, I tried to visit some of the Sharjah Art Foundation. I forgot to photograph this label but I believe they are embroidered textiles in the shape of contested area maps.

There were a couple of shows across 6 buildings and I got very turned around finding all of them/their entrances. This one was the strongest, by Khalil Rabah.

This isn't good documentation of this part of it but the panels are all paintings that look like info signs.

Because I can't explain, this is the tag for the following installation of barbed wire, olive oil, thread, nails, etc.

And the tags for the following visceral set of objects

This feels like a great depiction of my experience last week trying to get the right tools for my workshop (we failed).

Then I headed to the Museum of Islamic Civilization, which had not let me in the other day because of lack of local cash. I love books with marginalia.

These are miniature books, but it's hard to show the scale.

Words all over this tunic as well, a talismanic shirt worn under armor covered in verses that are meant to protect the wearer in battle, from the 18th century Ottoman Empire.

A paper calendar in a silver case (1860 Ottoman Turkey)

Indigo and gold on parchment, Qur'an page (10th century, North Africa)

Duck! 11th century, Herat, Afghanistan

14th-century Mongol silk dress (Lampas weave), Iran or Central Asia

A shield made of wicker, lined with silk, and steel in the middle. In the show that had artifacts from Venice.

Woven shields! Anyhow, the cab driver thought I got lost in there, since I guess it's abnormal to spend time in a museum. But I don't blame him, since he has to sit outside in the car the entire time waiting for me. I was so glad to finally get in and there was tons of other things to see. Now, time to get dressed to head back to the art foundation and meet the Koreans from Abu Dhabi!

College of Fine Arts & Design, Sharjah

Art Foundation exhibit

Islamic Civilization museum

Wisdom in the morning, Dhaid at night

Once I finally met people who were able to guide me as to good places to go, I learned about the House of Wisdom. It's a very new library near the airport in Sharjah, which has also been recently designated some kind of UNESCO book city.

The pics of the iconic sculpture based on Arabic script is on my camera so I don't have those to show right now (being lazy about downloading them), but it's a huge lovely site.

Inside I first looked at the exhibit of books and so on from a collection acquired by the library or emir or what have you (I'm sorry that I've been too exhausted to keep detailed notes). In the middle is a courtyard open to the sky.

It sounded like pigeons were gearing up for a fight or activity or something so I moved along after a bit.

A lot of it reminded me of the big library in Amsterdam. Including lots of people there to study, read, etc.

Exhibit space on the upper floor, this one about NFT art.

There are people laying in the circles. In the ladies only section that is more private there are pods that look like bunk beds built into the wall.

The big art books are all on the other side of the café and facing the children's section, which is lovely but I didn't photograph since there were children playing.

Bamboo shades for the windows.

More pods for private study

Wisdom Vault!

Part of the exhibit. I loved these big books with rugs drawn and partly colored. I so wanted to be here all the time to read and read and read.

I had been invited to attend the opening of the heritage days in Al Dhaid, which used to be an oasis area in the eastern part of Sharjah. This is a fort that was restored and everything happened around this area. I had no idea they did this festival is MORE than one location.

For this mini version, instead of the emir attending, the chairman of the heritage institute did the sweeping walkabout.

After watching people flock to him and waving, I wandered off to see what else was around. I went to the market area that wasn't yet crowded.

Yes, that's a falcon with its eyes covered on the left. That made me sad but I don't know enough about falconry to know about animal care.

On that side, I saw men working with date palm fibers.

The first makes the twists on top of his shin

while the second plies them together to make rope. A guy sitting nearby said only men did this work. Can that be true? Hm.

These baskets are all woven from date palm leaves.

And inside the fort is a recreation of the way they had bags of dates piled on top of each other. The weight of them causes the bottom ones to ooze date syrup into the grooves built to empty into a container.

Inside of the fort, plus lights from the town

View from the upper level of the fort

And the requisite camel. I saw kids riding one in the parking lot on the other side. It took a while to get the bus situation sorted out to return to the other festival in the Heart of Sharjah. I could probably have just gone back to the hotel but thought I should check in even if there was only an hour left. Turns out they needed another interview, and I've lost track of how many I've done so far. I haven't watched the video but you are welcome to see that I am now an actress, according to this write-up.