Art contest aims to promote Qatar, Germany artists’ unity

Young artists in Qatar and Germany will have the opportunity to take part in a unique art competition, organised by the Qatar embassy in Germany, Qatar Museums (QM) said.

Titled ‘Fight the Corona (Covid-19) pandemic – a reflection in Art – Prize of the Arabic Divan’, the competition serves as an appropriate platform to promote unity and solidarity among young artists between the two countries.

In an e-mail to Culture Pass members, QM urged young artists in the country to participate in the contest, which will also witness a virtual discussion with Dr Jeremias Kettner, deputy director the Arabic Cultural House – The Divan; Benita von Maltzahn, head of Global Cultural Engagement at the Volkswagen Group; Dr Julia Gonnella, director of the Museum of Islamic Art; and Berlin artist Alexander Iskin.

“In times of Covid-19 pandemic, cultural exchange across borders is even more important than it is anyway. Building bridges between cultures and thus initiating and continuously promoting sustainable dialogue remains the noblest and most important task of cultural diplomacy,” Qatar’s ambassador to Germany Mohamed bin Jaham al-Kuwari said in a press statement.

“That is why, as Qatar’s ambassador to Germany and the chairman of the Arabic Cultural House, The Divan, it is a great pleasure for me to send out a sign of friendship and cohesion in these difficult times for all of us,” the envoy said.

The Divan aims to provide a platform for artistic statements relevant to the current global situation and to convey those statements to a wider audience, bringing cultures together and build bridges of communication. It also fosters Arab-German dialogue through cultural programmes in various fields of co-operation such as education, sport, innovation and entrepreneurship, and politics.

Artists from Germany and Qatar, between 18 and 30 years old, are eligible to participate regardless of whether they have a degree. The deadline for submission is on October 15.

“The Covid-19 lockdown was certainly one of the most challenging situations in recent history – with months of isolation for everyone. No doubt, expressing oneself through art was an important way to touch ground with reality. I am therefore extremely happy to support the art prize ‘Fight the Corona pandemic’, initiated by Arabic Cultural House ‘Divan’ in Berlin, especially launched for young artists in Germany and Qatar,” said Dr Gonnella, who is also one of the jury for the competition.