“Success is not only measured by financial results but also by cultural relevance.” Ahmad Al Marri on why community support was crucial to Canvas Gelato’s success
Hashem speaks to Ahmad Al Marri, founder of Dubai-based ice cream brand Canvas Gelato.
Culture
Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi
Sultan is a man who has worn many hats over the decades—businessman, art collector, activist, academic.
Vilma Jurkute on developing Alserkal Avenue into an arts & culture hub by taking risks on risk-takers
This week, we’re joined by Vilma Jurkute, Director at Alserkal who shares her experience in developing Alserkal Avenue as the leading arts & culture district in the region. She chronicles its evolution from a marble factory owned by the Alserkal family to a collection of art and design galleries, artists’
Zaki Nusseibeh chronicles his personal journey with art & the importance of storytelling in building identities
In our first live conversation at The Lighthouse since launching the podcast, HE Minister of State Zaki Nusseibeh shares personal anecdotes from his childhood in Jerusalem, the early days of the UAE when he worked as a translator for HH Sheikh Zayed and the development of its arts and culture
Middle East Film & Comic Con: Arafaat Ali Khan
In the late 2000s, halfway across the world from the premiere event in the pop culture scene--the San Diego Comic Con--a young man couldn’t understand why the Middle East didn’t have one of these mega events for the aficionados of comic books & pop culture. Pull up a chair
Gulf Photo Plus & Seeing Things: Mohamed Somji
Just as the smartphone was revolutionizing the camera industry post-2007, a young expat was leaving behind his career as a brand marketer to become a photojournalist. Pull up a chair & join our conversation with Mohamed Somji, Director of Gulf Photo Plus & Founder, Seeing Things Photography.
Credits
Hosted & produced by Chirag
Isobel Abulhoul on building book centric businesses & instilling reading habits in children
This week, we’re joined by the CEO of the LitFest Foundation, Isobel Abulhoul, who is at the the center of the UAE & the region’s literary fraternity. Since arriving in Dubai over 50 years ago, she’s launched a prominent bookstore chain, a children’s publishing company and the
Humanity as Refuge
Fabric(ated) Fractures, a collaboration between Samdani Art Foundation and
Alserkal at Concrete, Dubai, ran from 9-30 March 2019. The seminal exhibition
featured works by 15 artists from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Thailand, and
Pakistan, who were also part of the foundation’s Dhaka Art Summit initiative. In
this two-part series
Frying Pan Adventures: Arva & Farida Ahmed
How do you go about carving a brand new facet for yourself in a tourism industry saturated by desert safaris? Pull up a chair and join the conversation with Arva & Farida Ahmed of Frying Pan Adventures.
Credits
Original music composed by Reiner Erlings. Our thanks to HardTalk for their support
My Custard Pie: Sally Prosser
How do you go about maintaining consistent quality and impeccable credibility as a brand owner in an age of surface social media where trendy trumps timeless? Do pull up a chair and join our conversation with Sally Prosser, founder of My Custard Pie.
There's also a bonus episode with some