Elite Traveler January-February 2015

INSPIRE ART

Life in Mexico is rough, raw and dangerous – a breeding ground for creativity

DOHA The art-loving, deep-pocketed Qatari royal family is turning Doha into a global art hub so quickly even the new airport doubles as a gallery. Two of Doha’s leading artists, Ali Hassan and Faraj Daham, will have work on show at the new terminal, though international arrivals won’t see the shock and awe tactics of other modern creatives. With Sheikha Al Mayassa Bint Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the daughter of the Emir of Qatar and her all powerful Qatar Museums Authority running the art scene, artists shy away from social comment. Their work takes a subtle, poetic mysticism. Hassan explores the letter ‘N’, while Yousseff Ahmad creates collages from handmade palm leaf paper. “Their work is special because it comes from their own environment,” says Ghada Sholy, director of one of Doha’s three privately owned galleries, Anima Art Gallery & Lounge. Prices are modest, even in this art-hungry region. One of the highest- priced pieces, Ahmad’s Movement of the Letter , sold for just $73,000 at Christie’s Dubai. “The international market prefers art that’s more cutting edge,” says Heather Al-Nouwairy, director of independent Al-Markiya. “Our aesthetic is regionalised. Calligraphy is common and when you can’t read it, apart from its beauty, the work is limiting, so affects the ability of an artist to break into the global market.”

Above: Anima Art Gallery and Lounge, Qatar. Right: an installation by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer in Mexico