VCUarts Qatar to make its debut at renowned ars electronica festival

VCUarts Qatar at ARS Electronica

VCUarts Qatar is showcasing progressive concepts that enhance new technologies to address complex social issues at Ars Electronica. Titled Meta-Functions of Cultural Production, the institute’s 10 works intertwine art, design, science, and technology in the exploration of new ways to respond to the ecosystems of Qatar and the larger Southwest Asia and North Africa (SWANA) region. The designs are by VCUarts Qatar faculty, undergraduate and graduate students, and include student-faculty collaborations.

‘Nanoabaya’ by Noor Rashid Butt, Dr Khaled Saoud and Christopher Fink, 2022 / Photographer: Raviv Cohen

(main image: ‘Rays of Essence’ by Hind Al Saad and Sara Khalid with sound design by Joshua Rodenberg and type design by Fatima Abbas, 2022 / Photographer: Raviv Cohen)

Virginia Commonwealth University of the Arts in qatar

The Qatar campus of Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of the Arts, VCUarts Qatar, was established in 1998 through a partnership with Qatar Foundation. VCUarts Qatar provides a connection for the Richmond-based School of the Arts to opportunities for cross-cultural exchange and the influential art and design world of the Middle East and beyond. The campus hosts two major international events – Tasmeem Doha, a biennial art and design conference; and the biennial Hamad bin Khalifa Islamic Art Symposium – and is exhibiting, for the first time, at Ars Electronica with an exhibition entitled Meta-Functions of Cultural Production.

‘Sacred Silence’ by Basma Hamdy, Shima Aeinehdar and Selma Fejzullaj with software design by Levi Hammett, 2022 / Photographer: Raviv Cohen

Meta-Functions of Cultural Production exhibition

Students and faculty at VCUarts Qatar work together to conceptualize as well as create solutions to global design issues. The exhibition, titled Meta-Functions of Cultural Production, reveals the outcomes of multi-disciplinary explorations and insights, highlighting the innovative and highly-collaborative approaches cultivated by the University’s diverse community.

‘Fast Paced Life’ by Ghayda Azam Abduljalil, 2023

The 10 selected works invite visitors to unravel the meaning of cultural contexts through systems of communication, behavior, and interaction. The exhibition explores cultural conceptions of places and prototypes, responsive design through Arabic typographic forms, nanotechnology for increased functionality in textiles, generative processes translating pattern to sound, and usages of AI datasets for blind contour drawings.

‘Transformative Distortions’ by Jood Elbeshti with Hala Amer, Saga ElKabbash and Mohammad Suleiman, 2023 / Photographer: Varun “Sunny” Dave