Dubai Next showcases Emirate’s thriving creative landscape

Dubai / Emirates Business

The Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Emirate’s dedicated entity for arts, culture and heritage, has concluded the fifth edition of Dubai Next – a dynamic platform that aims to showcase the Emirate’s cultural ethos and its vibrant creative scene on the global stage. This year’s edition of Dubai Next was part of ‘REMIX Sydney 2016’, held in Sydney, Australia from June 2-3.
REMIX Sydney 2016 – a conference on culture, technology and entrepreneurship in the Asia Pacific region – featured a compelling panel discussion on Dubai’s cultural and creative economy with the title ‘Dubai: A Journey Towards Creating a Regional Creative Hub’. The panel discussed three core themes: ‘Dubai: City of the Future’, ‘The Power of Innovation’, and ‘Home-grown Cultural Industries’.
A line-up of prominent UAE cultural thought-leaders participated in the panel and featured as speakers in the conference. Jamal Al Sharif, Managing Director of Dubai Studio City and Chairman of Dubai Film and TV Commission discussed the attraction of international talent to dedicated industry areas like Dubai Studio City. The CEO of Dubai Opera, Jasper Hope, gave an explanation of how the performing arts scene in Dubai will benefit from the city’s first purpose-built, multi-format performing arts venue. Dubai Design District (d3) Managing Director, Lindsay Miller shared how government stakeholders can effectively deliver creative neighbourhoods such as (d3) to contribute towards a successful creative economy. Cyril Zammit, Director of Design, Art Dubai Group and Fair Director of Design Days Dubai, highlighted how design is a core element of Dubai’s creative economy, attracting skilled professionals and generating economic growth. Lubna Al Shamsi, Head of Dubai Art Season Organizing Committee at Dubai Culture, delivered an outline of Dubai Plan 2021 and the key focus areas for Dubai Culture’s plans to support the Emirate’s cultural scene and flourishing creative community.
Also featured as part of REMIX Sydney’s ‘Trend Scouting – Global Innovation’ series was a presentation of Creatopia – a Dubai Culture initiative and the first Government-empowered digital portal dedicated to creative and cultural industry professionals. This online platform connects creative individuals with like-minded peers and exposes them to relevant news, guiding and nurturing the creative scene of Dubai, providing a platform for the exchange of information and offering opportunities leading to exposure and personal growth.
The cultural programme carried out by Dubai Culture in Australia included meetings and networking events with government entities in the creative sector, not-for profit heritage institutions & museums, and Deans of prestigious universities.

During the meetings, the Authority presented the cultural framework of the Emirate, with an exploration of collaborations aimed at nurturing both well-established and emerging talents from Dubai.
Dubai Culture also hosted a VIP dinner in collaboration with Sydney Living Museums, the government entity responsible for 12 heritage sites in Sydney, at the iconic ‘Elizabeth Bay House’, with an audience drawn from both the local and international creative industry, as well as key media who flew in to the city solely to attend REMIX.
The packed schedule continued with more meetings with a number of key organizations including the University of New South Wales, the City of Sydney’s ‘Creative Sydney’ department, the Australian Museum, the Sydney Film Festival, the Sydney Opera House and the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia. Discussions at these meetings explored collaboration opportunities and areas of shared interest, including a presentation by the City of Sydney of a two-to-three year-long accommodation and grants programme, and the Green Space Creative Hub: Urban renewal project.
Acting Director General of Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, His Excellency Saeed Al Nabouda said: “We are delighted to have debuted Dubai Next at REMIX Sydney and to complete our first cultural programme in Australia alongside some of the UAE key cultural figures. Cultural missions like these ultimately reinforce our strategic aim to highlight the UAE cultural credentials and position the Emirate of Dubai as a global arts and culture centre and a hub for the creative industries, in line with the objectives of Dubai Plan 2021.”
Al Nabouda added: “Our efforts focused on highlighting the central role of the creative economy in boosting Dubai’s quality of life, attracting international talent, resources and visitors to sustain multiculturalism as a source of strength and pride for the UAE.”
Dubai Arts & Culture Authority Director of Projects and Events, Moza Suwaidan said: “Our participation at REMIX Sydney provided us with a unique opportunity to share our vision for the future of the cultural and creative industries in Dubai. The presentation on Creatopia sparked great interest, enabling us to promote a new level of partnership, engagement and collaborative communication between the culture, arts and heritage sectors of the UAE and Australia.”
In Sydney, the Dubai Culture delegation also visited the 20th Biennale of Sydney, Australia’s largest contemporary arts festival, which is held across multiple venues in the city and widely recognised for presenting innovative, thought-provoking art from Australia and across the world. During a meeting with the event’s organisers, the discussion centred on how to support and empower a rising generation of artists through creative community programmes.
During its visit to Melbourne, Dubai Culture met with Creative Victoria, which supports, champions and grows the state’s creative industries. The two entities exchanged ideas and expertise on investment programmes in creative talents. Further discussion focused on raising the profile, reach and impact of the creative industries, supporting the career development of local artists and creative professionals, and on sharing ideas about how to ensure benefits to multiple creative sectors extending from schools to businesses.
The Dubai Culture delegation also gained inspiration from a tour of Melbourne’s landmark public art installations. Melbourne is known as one of the world’s great street art capitals, with unique expressions of art displayed on approved outdoor locations throughout the city. While in Melbourne, Dubai Culture also visited the Islamic Museum of Australia – a not-for-profit foundation established in May 2010 and Australia’s first Islamic museum – as the museum was wrapping up its two-month Islamic Coins Exhibition in collaboration with Dubai Culture. The Authority and the Islamic Museum of Australia hosted the exhibition which focused on introducing the history of Islamic trade and finance by showcasing a rare selection of coins chosen from several prominent collections.
The presence of Dubai Culture at ‘REMIX Sydney 2016’ is part of the Authority’s mission to help strengthen Dubai’s presence in the global arts and cultural landscape. This is one of a number of initiatives by Dubai Culture that are focused on establishing the Emirate as a global centre for creativity and enhancing the city’s cultural identity in order to drive the creative economy. The Authority also works to strengthen and promote the diverse cultural and creative fabric of Dubai, support and empower a new creative generation while preserving Emirati heritage.