Nurturing and developing the UAE’s creative economy

The creative economy.

The term refers to the interchange of ideas, intellectual property, knowledge and technology. But it is an ever-evolving concept, and resists being pigeonholed into a single definition.

It has also become a bit of a buzzword in the UAE, especially over the past 15 years as the country has endeavoured to bolster its creative sector.

In this time, several cultural institutions have been launched that reshaped the local creative landscape, notably Louvre Abu Dhabi and the New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) on Saadiyat Island, the Jameel Arts Centre and Alserkal Avenue in Dubai, and the House of Wisdom in Sharjah.

But setting up cultural institutions is only the first step. Next comes the challenge of engaging with the public and inspiring the next generation of artists, architects, software engineers, writers, publishers, researchers and film-makers.

Maya Allison, executive director of The NYUAD Art Gallery, and Bill Bragin, executive artistic director at the NYUAD Arts Centre, discuss the role the NYUAD is playing in nurturing and developing this creative economy.