• 9th March & 10th March 2022, 9 AM – 12 PM
• Room 266
• Upon Registration Only

Merging culture studies, in which anthropology intertwine with artifacts’ social life, with reflections around natural ecosystems: in this masterclass, we will investigate the possibility to think of designed objects as a direct and pure representation of humans’ activities (=endogenous), and/or rooted in specific geographical and cultural contexts (=endemic).

The use of a biological framework is motivated by the idea that a sort of Lex Naturalis (Natural Law), intended here in its secular exception, should drive design towards solutions that create as little friction as possible between the natural environment and its inhabitants. Moreover, we will analyze how adjacent subjects, such as material studies and circular design could play a fundamental role in explaining how endemic and endogenous design is defined and what are its principles and methods.

This masterclass is, in some way, at the crossing between the four Tasmeem axes touching on critical elements such as design utopias, vernacular knowledge, post-colonialism, and new ecologies. After an initial brainstorming and gathering of creative stimuli from the local environment, participants will engage in some physical experimentations chasing endemic and endogenous design opportunities. The final outcomes could result in both still images, videos, or physical representations depending on the nature of the conceptual paths that each participant/group will decide to undertake.

This event is an in-person event for the VCUarts Qatar community only. Please use the registration button to register.

• 9th March & 10th March 2022, 9 AM – 12 PM
• Room 101c
• Upon Registration Only 

It is 2022, and the idea of circularity shouldn’t be “radical”. Yet, it is. We continue to promote consumption, at unsustainable levels, with little or no thought to the end-of-life considerations of that consumption. At the core of Circularity lie materials: raw, processed, and waste. For many of us, these are foreign elements – something “out there” and vastly incomprehensible. Using the device of cooking, however, this workshop will treat materials as “ingredients”, and seek to acclimatize participants with the creation of new materials through this familiar act. Drawing on the culinary metaphor – the ephemeral and intoxicating soufflé is the result of four simple ingredients that everyone has in their kitchen at this very moment. The key is in the handling of the materials.

With assistance from Yasmeen Suleiman, Rabab Abdulla, and Abdul Rahman Anwar.

This event is an in-person event for the VCUarts Qatar community only. Please use the registration button to register.

• 7th March & 8th March 2022, 9 AM – 12 PM
• Room 213
• Upon Registration Only

Almost everything we use today is packaged. But could we think about a second life for those wasted plastic materials? The aim of the workshop is to play around with the transformation of non-biodegradable plastic bags and plastic bottles. How to explore those objects, which are very present in our daily lives, to divert their use? Using a simple iron, baking paper, and heat guns, we will have fun transforming those packaging into a new aestheticized material. Experimentation with materials, colors, and techniques will be at the center of this workshop.

Participants are required to bring plastic bottles, plastic bags, and wasted materials like pieces of wood, paper tubes, old t-shirts, which can be used to mold objects.

This event is an in-person event for the VCUarts Qatar community only. Please use the registration button to register.

7th March 2022, 2 PM – 3 PM
Atrium
Upon Registration Only

An artist talk with Jalila Essa di presented in three chapters: Chapter 1 reflects on the project ‘2.6g 329m/s’ a project where in vitro bulletproof human skin was created as an art project. Jalila will talk about how art can probe the duality of safety and the applications of new forms of biotechnology.

Chapter 2 discusses project ‘mestic’, creating plastics, textiles, and paper from cow manure. Continuing from the genetically modified goats of the bulletproof skin project and diving into the global problem of excess manure from intensive animal farming the artist will explain how a disgusting problem can hold the solution to two of the world’s most polluting industries: intensive farming and the textile industry.

And Chapter 3 is about the national development institute for the biological arts: BioArt Laboratories. Countless requests from artists, designers, and people in general (about best practices when working at the crossover of multiple domains) drove Jalila Essaidi to initiate the BioArt Laboratories foundation. A development institute that explores the possibility of combining culture, entrepreneurship, and nature together in a symbiotic relationship. Using project Tree-Antenna as a specific example.

This event is an in-person event for the VCUarts Qatar community only that will be streamed live. Members of the public are welcome to ask questions in a moderated chat, at the end of each session. Please use the registration button to register and receive a link to your chosen event.