"Technical Residency" .. A national program to hone technical talent

Imad Murad-Doha

“Art Residence” is a unique experience that gives the artist an opportunity to interact with creators from all over the world, as well as building bridges and inspiration to create a distinctive work of art for each artist. ".

Art Residency is the first program of its kind in the Middle East, and hosts twenty artists inside the "Fireplace .. Artists' Residence" in Doha in separate studios for nine months in the presence of experts and academics in all fields to hone these artistic talents. Technician featuring the most prominent works carried out during the period of artistic residence.

It was one of the sites of the Qatari civil defense before it was transformed in 2015 into a venue for artists to serve cultural life within the country by supporting the hosting of Qatari artists and residents in various art programs.

In her interview with Al Jazeera Net, Rawda Al Khouri said that her participation in the current residency program, which was launched last July, added an opportunity to get acquainted with the artists and the cultures of the works of art, as well as the works of the artists who were hosted in the program.

Al Khouri added that the artistic discussions that took place through the sessions and workshops of art residence have earned her a distinct experience and experience, including the discovery of the artistic and cultural scene in Qatar closely, expressing the hope that the duration of the artistic stay.

The artists' lives during their stay, according to El Khoury, allow the artist to dive into the depths of the world of beauty and artistic creativity, where artists move to a studio and collaborate with fellow designers and develop their own art styles, as well as meeting curators and museums and benefit from the guidance of elite artists From around the world in a way that helps them hone their artistic skills.

Great successes
Khalifa Al Obaidli, Director of Artists' Headquarters, confirmed that the program has achieved great success during the past four years in producing generations of artists in all fields who have the artistic culture and experience and possess all their tools, pointing out that the program, which began in September 2015 is the first of its kind in the region.

Al Obaidli adds in an interview with Al Jazeera Net that the program attracts twenty artists in each session, ten of them Qatari, and the other from different nationalities residing in Qatar, where each artist is given a special studio and a monthly financial reward for the purchase of the necessary tools, in addition to receiving all types of guidance And guidance through a group of specialized advisors from local universities and specialists in the field of art, philosophy and design.

According to Al Obaidli, the program aims to integrate Qatari artists and their counterparts living in the country, in addition to exchanging experiences over the period of stay.

Al-Obeidi explains that the program was not limited to Doha, it opened a studio in Paris, France and another in New York, while work is underway to establish several studios in a number of countries in the world, to send Qatari artists to conduct artistic residence outside the country for three months, during which the artist gains experience By living with artists on a global level in the country where he lived.

Regarding the method of selecting the participants in the technical residency program, Al-Obeidi said that there is a committee composed of five academics and artists who set the criteria for the appropriate selection among applicants for the program, pointing out that the number of applicants for the current technical residency program reached 300 applicants.