Emirati and resident artists expressed their feelings, love, and loyalty towards the United Arab Emirates, and their pride in its wise leadership, through 50 artworks featured in an exhibition held by the Emirates Art Museum 'Creativity Has a Home' in Dubai, under the title 'Pulse of the Nation'.
The exhibition, which opened recently, brought together diverse artworks representing unique visions and styles that reflect the richness of Emirati art and its cultural openness to the global creative scene. The works embodied the ideas and feelings of artists in the context of their engagement with the nation's efforts to overcome the challenges the region has recently witnessed.
The 'Pulse of the Nation' exhibition affirmed that art represents, in its primary dimension, a message of love and loyalty, and a sincere expression of gratitude towards the UAE — a homeland that unites more than 200 nationalities under the umbrella of security, wellbeing, and tolerance.
The museum's founder, Dr. Rafi'a Ghobash, said that the exhibition, held under the dual titles 'Pulse of the Nation' and 'Joy of the Nation', documents the artists' impressions of the recent period, the challenges it brought, and how they dealt with those circumstances.
She added: "In my view, the weapon in such circumstances takes many forms. On one hand, our armed forces bravely repelled the aggressions, while our wise leadership handled the situation with full wisdom and reason, preserving the security of the region, the homeland, its sons, and those residing on its soil. The Emirati people also played their role in this context through solidarity and cohesion in facing those events.
Creative figures — writers, authors, and artists — engaged with events on a creative level, expressing through their work their love and loyalty to the United Arab Emirates and their pride in its wise leadership and noble society." She continued: "Within the framework of its efforts, the museum collaborated with artists to mount this exhibition, which expressed the artists' love for the UAE and their defence of it and its values of peace, tolerance, and the promotion of human brotherhood."
She noted that the exhibition saw notable participation from resident artists of various nationalities, who expressed their loyalty to the country and its tolerance-based approach, affirming their belonging to the UAE, which represents for them the land of human aspiration and a haven for creativity and creators.
She said: "On a personal level, I was pleased by the artists' sense that they played a prominent role during that period, reflecting the spirit of initiative and positivity they draw from the spirit of the UAE. They expressed their firm stance against the aggressions we faced through art.
Some saw peace and security in the bravery of the first line of defence, represented by the guardians of the nation who protected it, its people, and its residents. Others saw it in the unity and solidarity of Emirati society. And others saw it in their pride in the UAE and its human values."
Emirati visual artist Shawq Abdullah said her participation in the 'Pulse of the Nation' exhibition represents a creative and human commitment to the UAE and its human values, viewing art as a message of love and loyalty, and equally as a stance against the aggressions the UAE faced during the recent period.
She said: "Through my participation, I wanted to convey a message of appreciation and gratitude to all the heroes who protected the security of the homeland and its people. I also wanted to highlight the beautiful hidden dimension of that — the dimension relating to the mothers of those heroes, their courage, and their raising of this valiant generation."
For her part, Emirati visual artist Sharifa Hussein said the exhibition represented an opportunity to express an important moment that proved the UAE is a homeland that defeats all evil and overcomes all challenges through its positivity and values based on peace and tolerance. She added:
"I participated in this exhibition not only to present myself artistically, but to express my gratitude to the homeland and its wise leadership through a work I wanted to be simple in concept yet profound in meaning. I presented a work based on merging the UAE flag with Arabic calligraphy."
Egyptian visual artist Rania Abu Hashim said: "The exhibition gave the artist a space to express their presence in the context of pride in the UAE and the performance of its brave soldiers during the recent period, which witnessed unprecedented challenges in the region." She added: "It was a wonderful opportunity to express, through the exhibition, my pride in the UAE, the people of the UAE, and the brave soldiers, and what they gave us during the recent period."