7 AUD Visual Communication (VC) students, along with Roberto Lopardo, Chair of the VC Department  and Sarah Lahti, Assistant Professor of VC, and 7 international artists participated in “ART for RENT” a video, installation and performance art exhibition.

In a city like Dubai, reality is in constant motion. Thrusting from underneath the sand, metal, concrete and sweat undergo a metamorphosis of sorts lending the city a chameleon-like face that changes its complexion with the dawning of every new desert sun. Swiveling bridges meander around the world's tallest buildings which overlook palm shaped islands that venture deep into an ever retracting sea. The Dubai Media City , Dubai Internet City , Festival City , Global Village, Culture Village , Knowledge Village , Dubai Investment Park , Green Community, the Greens and several other “zones” constitute an endless list of commercial and residential developments that spring out on a daily basis to offer an increasing expatriate population with the latest in technology, profit and luxury. And in the midst of it all, there I am, the art historian, theatre practitioner and cultural “entrepreneur” trying to carve a niche for myself, but one that is affordable to a full time academic, as rental rates have sky rocketed here over the last year or so.

“Art for Rent” is one way through which I am hoping to achieve just that. Light installations, video projections, and live performance pieces by several artists and senior visual communication students from the American University in Dubai will take place at the Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre, Mall of the Emirates. ” (event is a word that people love in Dubai ) much is desired and nothing is required. The audience is not required to react in a seemingly intelligent manner; this is usually a mish mash of convoluted sentences studded with the appropriate art terminology.  Censorship on such terminology will be implemented severely, and anyone who utters the words “form”, “layers” or “content” will be removed from the room. Well, at least I will visualize it happening. Nobody will have to buy ridiculously overpriced pieces to assert their position as the next best philanthropist to hit town. This is not the Christie's auction “event”! Most certainly, nobody will be required to sip “sparkling wine posing for champagne” drinks from pseudo-crystal glasses provided by the catering service that did their PR homework. I find that all too tediously déjà-vu…

Through “Art for Rent” I would like to bring to the foreground a pressing matter that I have come to discover amongst almost every young and aspiring artist who lives and works in Dubai , and that is the topic of authenticity. One of the things that I was told when I myself was an art/theater student was that “art captures reality and adds to it”. If this is something that we believe to be true and that we, in turn, pass on to our students, how are they to apply that in a city like Dubai where reality is in transit and change is the only constant thing?

“Art for Rent” seems to be the perfect title to denote this predicament. The term “Rent” signifies moving on, making do and being in a state of transit. It also denotes a measure of disinterestedness (you do not invest too much in a rented apartment) and more than anything else, “Rent” speaks of blurred horizons, an unclear tomorrow and a triumphing of practicality and caution over passion and commitment. It is all these feelings and observations that led me to choose video art as one of the main components of this exhibition. The realm of the virtual seems most appropriate as a tool of exploring the thin line between what is authentic and what is illusionary within this frantic phase of Dubai 's nascent modernity. The incorporation of light and electronic installations is a choice that reflects the visible three-dimensional physical growth that is overwhelmingly tangible at every corner. Last, but not least, came the choice to add performance art. At the core of its semantics, this art form cannot exist without the artist's human presence in the flesh. An act of transubstantiation is infused into the otherwise material elements used in the other art forms and this is partially due to the involvement of the creator/artist, but also to the reaction that is instigated from the audience and their perception of reality because of the artist's existence within the art work. The question here is: “Where does the human being stand within the scale of things?”

I spent almost a year preparing for “Art for Rent” and my journey has taken me across the globe in search of work that exhibits the right sensitivity to the subject and that would coexist coherently with the work of 14 students of mine whose own journey I have witnessed over two years since I first started teaching at the American University in Dubai. The right combination came to me through three exceptionally talented artists who hail from the Abramovician School and are members of the New York based group IPG “Independent Performance Group” and are connected to Rose Lee Goldberg's “PERFORMA” whose 2007 visual arts biennale is currently taking place in New York City . Christian Sievers, a graduate of the Royal Academy of Art in London , will be exhibiting a series of light installations, while Serbian Ian Civic will be presenting a performance/video piece created especially for the exhibition and to be performed for the first time in Dubai City. Alongside the two, Nezacket Ekici, who hails from Turkey , will be showing some of her latest works entitled “Blind”. The three invited artists will also be presenting public lectures and conducting workshops in areas of video and performance art. The exhibition will also feature work from Roberto Lopardo, the Chair of the Visual Communication department at AUD, Sarah Lahti and Michael Bray , film maker and sculptor respectively who are also art professors from the school. Last but not least, dynamic video installations will be included by the progressive “Area 3” group of artists from Spain .

Sam Bardaouil
Exhibition Curator
Assistant Professor of Art History, AUD