“Ramadan is a time of giving, a time of reflection, a time of prayer, a time of peace and a time to slow down and think about things that matter,” says Cynthia Richards as she shows me around the annual Ramadan exhibition at Art Couture, the gallery she founded that is housed at Al Badia Golf Club in Dubai’s Festival City.
This year, Richards has collated the work of five artists, including herself, for a group exhibition of works that reflects the spirit of the Holy Month.
Using textures, colour, calligraphy and mixed media, the works are as varied as the viewers who pass through the golf club at this time of year for the iftar buffet.
Hanging above the reception area is a piece by the Palestinian artist Ayham Hammed, who has used his writing to create a series of calligraphic works that rely on the use of colour and form.
The numbered series, which continues around the walls of the gallery, were painted specifically for the exhibition and are an ideal entry point.
Also created with this show in mind was Prayer and Peace by Aarti Bahl. An Arabesque pattern forms the base of the blue canvas, which the Indian artist created with a stencil made from card. Over this she has painted a crescent moon enveloping an image of a mosque. The image, which incorporates all the traditional elements of Ramadan, is also a mixture of the many techniques Bahl has taught herself since she gave up her profession – electrical engineering – to pursue art.
“I was working with a lighting company in India and I used to look at the spectrum of colours everywhere,” she says. “After some time I decided to pursue my passion so I practised on my own, learning, teaching and exhibiting in group shows.”
Flanking her work on either side are the delicate watercolours of Beena Samuel, another self-taught artist and also from India. Samuel has painted architectural scenes from Sharjah’s souqs and mosques. Using layering and emphasising the negative space in her paintings, she draws the viewer in.
“Watercolour is my favourite medium,” says Samuel. “I love colours and textures and motifs. I use the negative space to add mystery to the works.”
On the opposite wall are large and bold pieces by the British artist Terry Onanian, who has dedicated all of her works to the Hatta Rock Pools, in the Hajjar Mountains just outside of Dubai.
“I’ve been in Dubai for 22 years and my favourite place is Hatta,” explains Onanian. “But my works are not literal translations. At the moment I am into colours. When you go off-road you see very brightly coloured rocks and next to the lakes there is gunge – it is these things that interest me.”
To build up the tactile layers on her canvases are all sorts of fabric, from onion bags collected from the grocery store to lace from chair backs that her mother gave her and cardboard from Masafi bottled-water cartons. Part of the charm of her work is that you don’t know what it is. In its abstract form, it could resemble rocks, shells or any organic shape within the natural environment.
Richards, who uses the name Reta for her art, has some pieces from her Woven series also on display. Marrying tradition with modernity, Richards has taken patterns from the Bedouin tapestries common in the UAE and covered them with textured paint, making them resemble woven fabric.
“I have used different pieces and patterns and woven them together in painting,” she says. “It is about their individual lives, their trails, their sorrows, their joys – all woven in the threads. I’ve also used only three colours – red, black and white – to show the simplicity of the Bedouin people and gold detail to represent how the women adorn themselves in jewellery.”
To finish off the show are a few pieces by Hammed, who is also showing some traditional scenes such as an Emirati man pouring coffee or a child wearing a burqa peeking from behind a door to welcome in guests.
“We all have a connection with our different surroundings and our work complements each other nicely,” says Richards. “It’s been really great to work together and to have our ideas feed off each other.”
Ramadan ‘N’ Art runs until July 25 at Art Couture, Al Badia Golf Club, InterContinental Dubai Festival City. Call 04 601 0101 for details
aseaman@thenational.ae
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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