Quilt Art on Show at Mall of Emirates

DUBAI - Quilts with images of brightly coloured, inverted flying geese and upturned giant dahlias are getting a lot of attention from women art lovers at the second International Quilt Show.

Dhanusha Gokulan

Published: Fri 20 Feb 2009, 1:23 AM

Last updated: Mon 6 Apr 2015, 1:31 AM

The exhibition being held at the Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre (Ductac) at the Mall of the Emirates from February 11 displays artistic quilts made by women belonging to the quilters’ guild in the UAE and guilds from other countries in the region. A few quilts from Switzerland and the United States are also on show.

The exhibition will end this Saturday. “Quilting is like golf, you get hooked to it,” said Shankar Ramakrishnan, co-coordinator of the International Quilt Show, Dubai.

“Art quilts are like a tradition in the United States and other Western countries. In Dubai, there is no professional training institute for quilt art as such. In 1992, the Dubai Quilters guild was formed with 10 women members who have a passion for the art. Currently, the guild has around 70 members and they meet once a month to discuss and show the quilts they have been working on,” said Shankar.

The exhibition showcases quilts made by women in the Dubai Quilters Guild and quilters in Abu Dhabi.

Women from other GCC countries like Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are also taking part. Basic patterns like log cabins, double wedding ring, bargello and flying geese are painted in various colours.

Other than the exhibition, an interactive workshop is being organised by international professional quilters from Thursday to February 22. Various handmade and machine- made quilts are also on sale at Ductac.

Community Theatre & Arts Centre

Dubai’s very own community theatre and cultural centre has a lot to offer to aspiring and established artists. Located on the second floor of the Mall of the Emirates, Ductac is often missed by visitors.

The centre, which started three years back, now conducts over 100 classes for people belonging to all age groups.

Joanna Adshead, arts coordinator of Ductac, said, “I joined this place as a student as soon as I came to the UAE. I did not know anyone here, and Ductac introduced me to a whole network of people. It’s the grooming place for some very serious artists as well as budding artists.”

The centre offers courses to theatre and drama enthusiasts, creative art lovers, dancers, musicians, painters, calligraphy artists, potters, photographers and textile designers. Each of the categories also has special sub-courses and age groups.

The centre also runs periodic workshops for children during vacations. Professional artists occasionally rent space at Ductac to organise workshops for children and adults.

The centre is a non-profitable organisation and the fees range from Dh250 to Dh600 depending on the course structure as well as the age group.