You’d be forgiven for thinking that things don’t move very quickly in the Abu Dhabi art world. After all, now just 18 months away from their proposed completion dates, Saadiyat Island’s Louvre and Guggenheim mega-galleries are still little more than dusty construction sites, with not even a structural steel skeleton for the city’s canvas-gazers to enthuse over. However, while men in hard hats scratch their chins and spend weeks poring over contracts, one man is taking a much more direct approach to giving the capital’s creative credibility a much-needed boost. ‘I was reflecting on the days when I started my art journey – there was really nothing in the way of support, guidance or sponsorship,’ remembers Jalal Luqman, founder of Jalal’s Art Trip, digital artist and owner of the Ghaf Gallery.
‘I realised everyday work had made me guilty of the same thing I’d been blaming others for. I started thinking of ways to support up-and-coming artists who didn’t have the means to exhibit in a gallery, and decided on an initiative without the bureaucracy, without the blood-sucking curator or agent. I just wanted to teach them what took me 21 years to learn.’
Introduced back in 2008, Jalal’s Art Trip offers the city’s amateur artists a highly coveted shot at the big time. After a careful selection process, 10-15 candidates chosen by Jalal are taken on a field trip somewhere in the UAE to make sketches, take pictures and plan work inspired by their surroundings. They’re then given access to free workshops hosted by local artists and, finally, featured in an exhibition at the Ghaf, in which work influenced by the trip is shown to the city’s press and dignitaries. If only the people involved were vacuous and morally repugnant, it could almost be the premise of a reality TV show.
Now in its fourth year, Jalal estimates that his trips have helped at least 10 candidates become professional artists, with others finding jobs in creative and cultural fields. As a result, places have become the subject of many an aspiring creative’s wildest ambitions, causing Jalal to tighten the rules this time round. ‘I really want to make sure the help goes to the people who deserve it the most, so for the upcoming trip I will be interviewing all the applicants personally.’ Fancy your chances? Aside from being a dab-hand with a paintbrush, it’ll also be handy if you look good in a wetsuit.
‘This year’s theme is “inspirations from the deep”,’ he tells us. ‘We’ll be taking a bus from the Ghaf Gallery out to the port, and then boarding a boat out to our dive site, where we’ll be making several dives and checking out the UAE’s spectacular underwater scenes.’
Though not set in stone, Jalal has scheduled the trip for some time in April, with the subsequent exhibition pencilled in for May. To be eligible, candidates must not have previously exhibited their work – either individually or as part of a group – and are required to provide three samples of their art.
And there you have it – grassroots art activism at its least cynical. But what’s in it for Jalal? Seemingly, the reward of stimulating the capital’s artistic pulse is gratifying enough.
‘The next big Emirati artist is alive, but they probably don’t have the confidence or the support to exhibit their work. So their paintings are hidden under their bed. The reward of helping them make that step is beyond belief. Just to see them on the opening night – it’s a total transformation. Every trip they ask me, ‘Where is your painting? Where is your artwork?’ and I say, “You guys”.’
To apply for a place on Jalal’s Art Trip, download and complete the application form from www.jalal-luqman.com. Applications will be accepted until mid-February, and the trip is open to all nationalities.
