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July 18, 2017
A Whole Other World

If you’re a fan, like me, of comics and the related games and movies they inspire, you will undoubtedly have heard of, if not visited, Comic-Con. These conventions are held in major cities around the world and gather fans by the tens of thousands.

Comic Con 2017

Obviously, a major marketing tool for the industry they are also an opportunity for us, the aficionados, to immerse ourselves in the fictitious worlds we love, often dressing as our favourite hero (or villain) for the day and bringing the character to life along with our alter ego.

Dubai’s annual gathering, The Middle East Film and Comic Con (MEFCC), held at the Trade Centre over 3 days in April, is now the biggest popular culture event in the region. I have been attending since the beginning in 2008 and the growth of interest and participation has been phenomenal.

Being such a youthful cauldron of nationalities and cultures, Dubai’s version offers a mixture of people which is probably unique in the world, all drawn by a common enthusiasm. That makes it truly fascinating. You have Batmen, Hulks, Spocks and Wonder Women from every corner of the earth.

Bushra at Comic Con_003For this year’s visit, I became a fully made up character of my own creation in the Japanese Manga style. I have loved manga comics since my teenage years, drawn to their detailed illustration, depth of character and life simulating story lines.

Having always enjoyed illustrating and drawing, I am inspired by the artists behind these comics and characters. Studio Ghibli, based in Tokyo, is a favourite, making incredible films for huge global audiences (and profits).

I am extremely happy to say that illustration has now become part of my professional life and I can create scenes and characters that communicate and influence on behalf of our clients.

For a unique spectacle of creativity visit Comic-Con in 2018. I’ll be there but you probably won’t recognise me.

 

Bushra Laota – Graphic Designer at Zaman

April 3, 2014
Clusters of Light 2014

Clusters of Light 2014

We recently visited Clusters of Light to mark the Sharjah Islamic Culture Capital 2014 and were quite impressed with the event. His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, attended the first performance of the spectacular musical Clusters of Light at Al Majaz Amphitheatre, Sharjah.

The musical, which depicts the beginnings of Islam through poetry, music, drama and dazzling audiovisual effects, marked the commencement of Sharjah’s year of celebrations at being named Capital of Islamic Culture and drew an audience of over 3,500, bringing together the emirate’s senior officials with artists from throughout the Arab world.

Clusters of Light, an epic musical show, was written by Dr Abdul Rahman Al Ashmawi, a Saudi poet, and composed by the Bahraini artist Khalid Al Shaikh. The soundtrack was recorded by the German Film Orchestra Babelsberg in Berlin, led by the German composer Christian Steinhauser. We were honored by the Arab idol winner, Mohammed Assaf, who opened the stage show, followed by artists such as Hussein Al Jasmi, Ali El Haggar and Lotfi Bouchnak.

The stage show, a narration of the biography of the Prophet Mohammed from his birth until his passing, featured several actors and musicians, with cinematic visuals and live performances.

Did you have the honor of experiencing this truly spectacular musical event in Sharjah?

March 20, 2014
Our Top 5 Picks at Art Dubai

Our Top 5 Picks at Art Dubai

Tashkeel – Established in 2008, Tashkeel is a contemporary art organisation based in Dubai committed to facilitating art and design practice, creative experimentation and cross-cultural dialogue.

Leila Heller Gallery – Founded in 1982 in New York, is known for having an active and innovative exhibition featuring international contemporary artists and modern masters from the Middle East. For over 25 years, the gallery has had a long-standing commitment to creating links between Eastern and Western culture through art.

Lombard Freid Gallery – Was founded in 1995 in New York. Over the last nineteen years, the gallery has prided itself on curatorial exploration and a commitment to artists whose works combine a remarkable visual vocabulary with a strong conceptual underpinning.

Grey Noise – Is a contemporary art gallery representing a selection of artists, with a focus on work from South Asia, the Middle East and Europe. The gallery provides emerging and established artists with a platform for ambitious projects engaged in dialogue with the international art community.

Galerie Chantal Crousel – Since its establishment in 1980, Galerie Chantal Crousel has represented artists of diverse origin to the French and international art worlds. These artists share a common exploration of the essential values that underlie contemporary society, each drawing upon their own heritage to develop a visual language that is both powerful and universal.

February 1, 2014
COUNTING DOWN TO DESIGN DAYS

COUNTING DOWN TO DESIGN DAYS DUBAI 2014

The region’s first and leading dedicated design fair, Design Days Dubai, returns for its third edition to deliver a diverse, exhibition-quality collection of compelling, highly-collectible modern and contemporary design pieces and installations, alongside a public programme with leading design personalities and industry experts, from 17 – 21 March 2014. In anticipation of this, the organizers have planned a series of initiatives to whet the appetite of art & design aficionados. One such, is the exhibitor spotlight.

When Alexis Ryngaert established his design gallery in Brussels in 2008 he created Victor Hunt as an alter ego – an approach just as intriguing as the works that have given the gallery its strong and distinct voice in the contemporary design/art world. As seen in the work presented at Design Days Dubai since the fair’s inception, the designers represented by Victor Hunt produce bold pieces, often unexpected employing both new technology and new uses of old technology.

Victor Hunt’s website incorporates a series of beautifully filmed and skillfully edited documentaries following the designers represented through the production of specific works. By bringing production alive, showing it as an organic and often unpredictable process, driven by the materials used, the films also provide insight into each designer’s creative approach – and they highlight what Ryngaert, through Victor Hunt, defines as designart: the grey area where craft, architecture, industrial design, sculpture and other artistic disciplines meet.

Below are three such videos taken from the website. Enjoy!

 

By: Zaman
01-02-2014
Arab world, Art, Design, Exhibitions

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COUNTING DOWN TO DESIGN DAYS DUBAI 2014

The region’s first and leading dedicated design fair, Design Days Dubai, returns for its third edition to deliver a diverse, exhibition-quality collection of compelling, highly-collectible modern and contemporary design pieces and installations, alongside a public programme with leading design personalities and industry experts, from 17 – 21 March 2014. In anticipation of this, the organizers have planned a series of initiatives to whet the appetite of art & design aficionados. One such, is the exhibitor spotlight.

When Alexis Ryngaert established his design gallery in Brussels in 2008 he created Victor Hunt as an alter ego – an approach just as intriguing as the works that have given the gallery its strong and distinct voice in the contemporary design/art world. As seen in the work presented at Design Days Dubai since the fair’s inception, the designers represented by Victor Hunt produce bold pieces, often unexpected employing both new technology and new uses of old technology.

Victor Hunt’s website incorporates a series of beautifully filmed and skillfully edited documentaries following the designers represented through the production of specific works. By bringing production alive, showing it as an organic and often unpredictable process, driven by the materials used, the films also provide insight into each designer’s creative approach – and they highlight what Ryngaert, through Victor Hunt, defines as designart: the grey area where craft, architecture, industrial design, sculpture and other artistic disciplines meet.

Below are three such videos taken from the website. Enjoy!

 

Full list of Design Days Dubai 2014 exhibitors can be viewed here.

October 23, 2013
SHUWEIHAT S2 PLANT INAUGURATION

SHUWEIHAT S2 PLANT INAUGURATION – A SHARED MILESTONE

There is something almost paradoxically delicate about celebrating the launch of a power plant. Having built a reputation for organizing unique events to mark the milestones of leading businesses in varied industries such as the inauguration of FAPCO F2 plant two years ago; Zaman has spent the past 7mths working tirelessly to create yet another memorable event for the UAE’s energy sector.

The inauguration of the Shuweihat S2 power & desalination plant, which was held on Oct 8th, was the culmination of three years of insurmountable efforts by a consortium of local & international partners, who’s shared vision forms a critical component of the Abu Dhabi government’s Vision 2020 master plan. It is because of this that Zaman was tasked with the responsibility to create an event that was intense, tactful, refined and powerful.

The inauguration event for the S2 plant was scheduled to take place on the premises of the actual plant site. In the lead up to this, lots of planning was required of which logistics was one of the most critical parts. Set about 250 kms away from Abu Dhabi, the logistics to organize the venue and accommodate the security detailing involved in having members of the Royal family as invited guests, while adhering to the stringent access protocol to power plants for unauthorized personnel – called for detailed planning, timely coordination, continuous information flow and a degree of improvisation as ground preparations & rehearsals were not feasible.

In previous posts (here & here) we have highlighted the importance of streamlining the entire event experience from the moment invited guests arrive at a venue to the moment they leave. For S2 it was really important that the first impression be welcoming, entertaining, with a sense of excitement about the milestone that the guests would be a part of, in order to counter the 5hrs required to reach the plant site!

Zaman orchestrated the day’s proceedings in a way that cascaded a series of onsite interactive events, which included a discovery trip around the state of the art facilities of the S2 plant. The event began with a simple lunch to set everyone at ease after a long journey. There were a total of 230 guests who accompanied guest of honour HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed. Post lunch guests were escorted to a reception tent which had been set up akin to a gallery with a series of huge panels that highlighted the milestones of the plant’s construction as well as its features and capacity specs. This was visually told in a blend of beautifully shot plant photos and infographs created by Zaman using research and inputs from various partners such as ADWEA and members of the S2 team.

Just before the arrival of the Royal family everyone was ushered to the presentation area – a black room with 7m high ceiling, a dramatic stage design and an amazing canopy of the plant. The setting was contemporary and elegant, with amber lighting used to focus on a red carpet walkway and the lecterns. Once guests were seated, two appointed Masters of Ceremony ensured that the itinerary, which included speeches by senior officials from ADWEA and GDF Suez, flowed smoothly. A showreel, which was a blend of 3D animation, testimonials, and motion graphics, showed a 4-minute interplay between facts and figures that were highlighted against a backdrop of S2 pictures – showcasing once again Zaman’s varied creative development capabilities.

The peak of the event was the official plant unveil which was done by HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed. To capture the attention of the audience, Zaman put together a unique mechanism for this moment. A tower in the form of a stack was brought to His Highness. Once he pressed the button, the sound of a turbine filled the room and a gauge on screen was animated followed by the opening of a large 20meters panel to reveal the S2 in all its glory.

This was immediately followed by a small Royal tour, and a guided discovery in shuttles around the plant. The entire experience was marked with many memorable moments, including an iconic photo of the plant with HH Sheikh Hamdan and the consortium of partners.

The culmination of 7months preparation and coordination with our partners, which manifested into a one hour event, underscores Zaman’s ability to expertly create & manage complex event projects. All of this work would not have been possible without the professionalism and commitment of team Zaman. Well done!

—

June 22, 2012
QFIB

GUIDING A NEW BANKING ERA IN QATAR – QFIB

QFIB, a new approach to banking, was born amidst the global financial crisis. Derived from sound Islamic principles of sharing and integrity, its story capitalizes on the current economic state of affairs presenting a new and different approach to banking.

Although the bank already had a logo QFIB commissioned Zaman to create a more structured brand identity and comprehensive guidelines to ensure consistent application of the brand to multiple environments. Additionally we created templates for annual reports & the corporate brochure.

To mark QFIB’s inauguration Zaman orchestrated an event at Doha’s I.M Pei Islamic Museum. All elements of the event from the invites – personalized with gold leaf calligraphy and sealed with gold wax, and presented in a hand stitched leather box, to layered lighting choreography, space architecture, welcome kit and gift items were designed to reinforce QFIB’s Islamic values of transparency and depth.

Click here to see more of Zaman’s case studies.

June 22, 2012
Guiding a new banking era in Qatar – QFIB

QFIB, a new approach to banking, was born amidst the global financial crisis. Derived from sound Islamic principles of sharing and integrity, its story capitalizes on the current economic state of affairs presenting a new and different approach to banking.

Although the bank already had a logo QFIB commissioned Zaman to create a more structured brand identity and comprehensive guidelines to ensure consistent application of the brand to multiple environments. Additionally we created templates for annual reports & the corporate brochure.

To mark QFIB’s inauguration Zaman orchestrated an event at Doha’s I.M Pei Islamic Museum. All elements of the event from the invites – personalized with gold leaf calligraphy and sealed with gold wax, and presented in a hand stitched leather box, to layered lighting choreography, space architecture, welcome kit and gift items were designed to reinforce QFIB’s Islamic values of transparency and depth.

Click here to see more of Zaman’s case studies.

May 13, 2012
Creating a lifestyle in Sorouh’s

Creating a lifestyle in Sorouh’s exhibition stand at Cityscape Abu Dhabi

Having recently evolved the Sorouh brand’s customer proposition to be more attuned to what matters to customers, Zaman was asked to work on the Sorouh stand for Cityscape Abu Dhabi 2012 to bring the brand to life on the stand. A huge investment attracting the most important of stakeholders the stand had to stand proud whilst delivering a clearly differentiated experience.

Zaman applied Sorouh’s brand identity system to the exhibition stand, streamlining the brand tagline “Places that matter” to create unique experiences for four key development projects – Alghadeer, Shams, Boutik & Al Rayyana. For each Zaman created distinct areas complete with the existing models and presentation videos. We then integrated into the spaces the very personal ‘moment’ images that had we created as part of the brand evolution project. The exterior walls represented the Sorouh developer brand and while allocated spaces within the stand were utilised carefully selected imagery & elements to target audience specific lifestyles, resulting in stylish experiential installations.

For the retail concept, Boutik, we created a striking shop window that reflected the range of outlets and services that will be available. Using mannequin hands to hold the display items the installation was strikingly creative yet informative. Its position on the main front corner captures attention. For the high rise, metropolitan Shams development we recreated a ‘his and hers’ walk-in wardrobe stylishly stocked with clothes and items that reflect an active, successful and professional lifestyle.  For the Alghadeer development we emphasized its green and natural environment and outdoor lifestyle by creating a green wall with a bicycle leaning against it and a child’s tree swing. For Al Rayyana, which emphasizes its easy sense of community and neighbourhood, we recreated a ‘just dropped in for a coffee’ scene with a table of coffee cups, chocolate cake, fruit bowl and flowers integrated into a backdrop kitchen image.

By creating these detailed scenes, captured realistically from within the project inner space, audiences could see, feel and more easily relate to the key elements of the individual lifestyle proposition of each development. Parallel to this Sorouh also wanted to communicate its ongoing commitment to the UAE’s vibrant local art scene so they commissioned 3 local artists to create art for the stand responding to the brief “What matters to you?”. The art works were hung partly completed and the artists were then invited to complete their respective works during Cityscape Abu Dhabi. The element of a live performance enabled a unique interaction between artists and visitors creating a positive experience for both; and a clear expression of Sorouh’s commitment to delivering what matters to people.

By John Eccles – Zaman MD

May 13, 2012
Creating a lifestyle in Sorouh’s exhibition stand at Cityscape Abu Dhabi

Having recently evolved the Sorouh brand’s customer proposition to be more attuned to what matters to customers, Zaman was asked to work on the Sorouh stand for Cityscape Abu Dhabi 2012 to bring the brand to life on the stand. A huge investment attracting the most important of stakeholders the stand had to stand proud whilst delivering a clearly differentiated experience.

Zaman applied Sorouh’s brand identity system to the exhibition stand, streamlining the brand tagline “Places that matter” to create unique experiences for four key development projects – Alghadeer, Shams, Boutik & Al Rayyana. For each Zaman created distinct areas complete with the existing models and presentation videos. We then integrated into the spaces the very personal ‘moment’ images that had we created as part of the brand evolution project. The exterior walls represented the Sorouh developer brand and while allocated spaces within the stand were utilised carefully selected imagery & elements to target audience specific lifestyles, resulting in stylish experiential installations.

For the retail concept, Boutik, we created a striking shop window that reflected the range of outlets and services that will be available. Using mannequin hands to hold the display items the installation was strikingly creative yet informative. Its position on the main front corner captures attention. For the high rise, metropolitan Shams development we recreated a ‘his and hers’ walk-in wardrobe stylishly stocked with clothes and items that reflect an active, successful and professional lifestyle.  For the Alghadeer development we emphasized its green and natural environment and outdoor lifestyle by creating a green wall with a bicycle leaning against it and a child’s tree swing. For Al Rayyana, which emphasizes its easy sense of community and neighbourhood, we recreated a ‘just dropped in for a coffee’ scene with a table of coffee cups, chocolate cake, fruit bowl and flowers integrated into a backdrop kitchen image.

By creating these detailed scenes, captured realistically from within the project inner space, audiences could see, feel and more easily relate to the key elements of the individual lifestyle proposition of each development. Parallel to this Sorouh also wanted to communicate its ongoing commitment to the UAE’s vibrant local art scene so they commissioned 3 local artists to create art for the stand responding to the brief “What matters to you?”. The art works were hung partly completed and the artists were then invited to complete their respective works during Cityscape Abu Dhabi. The element of a live performance enabled a unique interaction between artists and visitors creating a positive experience for both; and a clear expression of Sorouh’s commitment to delivering what matters to people.

By John Eccles – Zaman MD

May 23, 2011
FAPCO

FAPCO – Powerful Event for a Powerful Plant

How does one of the largest desalination power plant in the World celebrate its inauguration? With a Royal event.  FAPCO Fujairah 2 met all the environmental and construction challenges and was built right on schedule. So the directors wanted to share their success with the owners, partners, and general public, a Royal event was the best way to celebrate its inauguration.

To view our full gallery of images for this event click here

Zaman teamed up with FAPCO to create a historic event at the site. The event astonished the Royal guests and dignitaries. Set in a unique tent that was placed on the plant premises, the event was staged to take the audience through a crescendo of stimulations that culminated in a grand opening.

The invitations were created at two levels. Royal and VIP. Both reflected the sophistication of the event by using handmade silk paper, calligraphy, and gold foiling. There were different celebrations, so we created a clever mechanism for layering various messages.

The reception space was created like an art gallery. We wanted to exhibit the  achievements of FAPCO and by the same token celebrate the partners. Architecture Graphics showed the positioning of Fujairah F2 on the National Grid. The timeline of building the plant was demonstrated in a huge panel where more than 200 images were juxtaposed with important milestones.

To view our full gallery of images for this event click here

The show was attended by the Supreme Council Menber and Ruler of Fujairah Sheikh Hamad Bin Mohammed Al Sharqui,  HH. Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs and  various ambassadors . So we liaised with Protocol to enhance their experience by creating a dramatic exit and a ribbon cutting finale that astonished the audience and media. The stage opened to the reveal the plant in all its glory.

The imagery was stylized to create a sophisticated backdrop on the stage and around both rooms.  We wanted the plant to look like a piece of art. And one of the gifts was a limited edition fine art print of the stacks.

Every detail in the event exudes sophistication, innovation, and minimalism.

To view our full gallery of images for this event click here

 

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