BY RAYNALD C RIVERA
The recently opened Doha Fire Station marks another milestone in the evolving arts and culture landscape of Qatar as it sets a new paradigm for heritage preservation and opens a new window on contemporary art production.
On the exterior, the structure maintains the look of the old Civil Defence building — a veneer of what it once was decades ago for many a resident and citizen — but getting inside provides an entirely new space which awaits new breed of artists to produce innovative art. Located in Wadi Al Sail, the iconic building was built in 1982 and had been used by the fire brigade until late 2012 when it was handed over to Qatar Museums (QM) for preservation and conservation.
Repurposing the function of the building from one of civil administration to one of civil use, QM has taken a significant step preserving an important element of the Doha’s built environment for the future amid the many changes witnessed by the city as it rapidly develops.
“We want to keep our own identity and heritage. We do a lot of heritage preservation. There were talks that the building could be demolished and we knew that we had to save it and be transferred for civil use because it is a building that everybody is associated with,” said QM Chairperson H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, during the ‘Generations for Culture’ panel discussion held last week at Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar.
Public visits to the building were once limited to schools, but now it is open to anyone interested to learn and interact with emerging artistic talent locally and regionally.
“We wanted to be a true creative hub in the heart of Qatar. We wanted to add another layer to the great culture and artistic scene that is happening around the city,” said Hala Al Khalifa, director of the Fire Station.
The Fire Station provides an Artist in Residency programme set to propel a sustainable artistic environment in the country. It focuses on various disciplines from visual arts, fashion, anime and multimedia to literature, performance and music.
“We are opening for all creative disciplines of artists living in Qatar at the moment, but hopefully once we grow and we have a much wider audience we will open to a more regional and international intake of artists,” said Al Khalifa.
The first cycle of the programme has witnessed 170 applicants, from whom 20 will be selected by an independent jury, said Sheikha Al Mayassa, adding they wanted specifically to unleash talent of young artists who could barely rent a space to work.
This first batch of resident artists will work for nine months starting September this year in the studios of the Fire Station which is home to 24 studios and a gallery space for exhibitions and community interaction. Twenty studios will be open to these artists, while four will be reserved for visiting artists.
At the end of their residency, the 20 artists will stage a group exhibition in the Garage Gallery.
“We actually kept the identity of the space itself; it was the garage where all the fire trucks used to park so that’s still called the Garage Gallery. We will have our annual show there and showcase everything that’s happening in the residency,” said Al Khalifa.
The Fire Station also features other facilities such as a park, a library, an arts and crafts shop, a cinema, a plaza, and a restaurant set to promote an interactive environment and community engagement.
There is also an auditorium designed for meetings of the artists, but can also be used by amateur and aspiring artists, said Sheikha Al Mayassa.
“We have already been approached by a comedy group, a gaming group and an animation group. People are coming to us already and we’re giving them access to the facilities based on availability.”
Al Khalifa expressed keenness in having an open studio initiative to create an extensive dialogue between the artists and the wider community in the future.
“It is very important for the community to come to the Fire Station on specific days and be introduced to the artists and understand how they work, how they think and have a little window into their studio spaces. It is always exciting to see how an artist works within his environment.”
As its initial offering, the Fire Station recently opened the 555 exhibition, a fitting homage to ‘The Art Centre’, the first artist in residence initiative which was the brainchild of Sheikh Hassan bin Mohammed bin Ali Al Thani. This inaugural artist in residence programme in Doha began in 1995 and culminated in 2005.
The exhibition features works by artists from the Arab world who temporarily lived in Qatar and left an indelible influence on its cultural landscape. It is an in depth documentation that opens a portal to the first residences in Doha through paintings, installations, photographs, and videos. It is open to the public until July 14.
The Peninsula
