Where creative minds meet ——
The UAE is home to a host of inspiring spaces designed to serve the region’s burgeoning art community
/ Alserkal Avenue
A complete contrast to Dubai’s more well-known luxury offering, the urban quarter of Al Quoz charms with its back-to-basics approach and hip industrial façades – making it the perfect spot for Alserkal Avenue’s creative vision. Since its humble beginnings in 2007, Alserkal Avenue has and continues to expand at an impressive rate and in a number of awe-inspiring ways. Growing with the city’s cultural community, the original layout that once featured 20 warehouses now stretches across 500,000 square feet. Not only is it home to a number of emerging and established galleries, but the area has become synonymous with homegrown cultural initiatives and inventive public spaces. Alserkal Avenue showcases much more than just art in a conventional sense. This is a thriving community that offers something experimental and unexpected at almost every turn. From painting sessions at JamJar and film screenings at The Yard to shopping for quirky interiors at The Odd Piece, there’s plenty to pique your interest. Running until September 15, visitors can catch the last few weeks of Alserkal Avenue’s Summer Programme. Highlights include tai chi lessons and a thought-provoking series of lectures and workshops entitled Sensing Memory, which explores the connection between the senses and our personal and collective memories. Then on September 24, Alserkal Lates kicks off at 6pm to give art seekers an after-dark view of the community’s galleries, design spaces and quirky dining destinations. alserkalavenue.ae
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