Emirati heritage through books, creativity and art

Sharjah - 'Books - Made in UAE' launches fifth edition with Manga Comic Art.

The fifth edition of the 'Books - Made in UAE' project, was announced on Thursday by The UAE Board on Books for Young People (UAEBBY) in coordination with Goethe-Institut.
The project sponsored by Knowledge without Borders (KwB) aims to build the capacities and skills of young Emirati authors and illustrators under the supervision of a group of international experts.
The details of the project to be launched in collaboration with Al Jalila Cultural Centre for Children (AJCCC) were announced on Thursday during a Press conference as part of the ongoing Sharjah Children's Reading Festival.
Addressing the conference, Marwa Obaid Al Aqroubi, President of the UAEBBY Executive Board, said the project, which launched in 2011 and coorganised by UAEBBY and the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region, seeks to promote Emirati literature, encourage young talented Emirati authors and illustrators, develop children's books and promote reading as a noble habit among children and young adults in the UAE.
She added that the project will see a Manga comic art workshop taking place at AJCCC, located in Umm Suqeim, Dubai, from April 24-28. The venue was selected because of its mission to expand Emirati and Arab cultural heritage through creativity and art, with the organisers saying that the activity will help unify efforts to develop a new generation of Arab authors and illustrators.
The workshop will be conducted by German comic artist and 'Mangaka' Inga Steinmetz. The project aims to give participants the opportunity to create and develop new narratives, train them how to tell their stories in an exciting way and familiarise them with the latest international drawing techniques used in the field, said Al Aqroubi.
Dr Gabriele Landwehr, general-director of the Goethe-InstitutGulf Region said: "'Books - Made in UAE' has brought together for the very first time Emirati children's book authors and illustrators to produce 100 per cent Emirati children's books. With the support of experienced workshop instructors and successful authors and illustrators such as Ute Krause, Kirsten Boie, Jutta Bauer and Sascha Hommer, the talented young authors and illustrators help to develop children as a generation of book lovers. We are most grateful that we found in UAEBBY a partner who shares this vision. In what is a fruitful and enjoyable partnership with UAEBBY, 'Books - Made in UAE' has proven to be both highly effective and extremely successful and continues as a long-term project."
Rashid Al Kous, general manager of KWB said: "We are proud to be sponsoring the 5th edition of Books - Made in UAE project whose objectives are allied with KWB's objectives that aim to improve the reading skills of school children. Our sponsorship to this edition stems from our belief in the great value of the project that aims to support Emirati Literature, encourage young talented Emirati and hone their skills in the field of writing and illustrating and provide a high quality Emirati content in an easy and simple way."
He pointed out that besides sponsoring the event, '1001 Titles' initiative launched by KwB last February, will print and publish all the titles that the participating authors and illustrators in the 5th edition of 'Books - Made in UAE' will produce.
"We are pleased to support another great initiative, titled 'Books - Made in UAE'. The project aims to inspire young people to write, paint and draw books under the guidance of experts from each of these fields, something we have been mastering in our Centre," said Bushra Al Rahoomi, programme director at AJCCC and host of the project's workshop.
Leading authors and illustrators have participated in organising the project's workshops in previous years, among them are Rainer Wekwerth German fantasy author; Kirsten Boie writer of award-winning children's and young adult's books; Ute Krause one of Germany's best-known children's and teen novel authors; Sascha Hommer a children's book writer and illustrator for the past 26 years; Jutta Bauer German comic artist and illustrator; and Noura Al Noman, Emirati author of the first science fiction novel for teenagers, 'Ajwan,' which won the Etisalat Award for Arabic Children's Literature. - afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

• Sharjah