'Fire Station: Artists in Residence' opens in November
As part of an initiative to preserve iconic buildings in Doha, a residency programme for artists will be conducted in the renovated Civil Defence building, known as Fire Station.
'Fire Station: Artists in Residence' will open in November as a hub to support the local art community and encourage exchange of ideas between artists by the Qatar Museums Authority (QMA), officials said.
As the country puts emphasis on preserving old architecture, the facade of the old Fire Station will remain the same paying tribute to Doha’s heritage, said Qatari architect Ibrahim Al Jeidah.
Renovation of the building is led by Al Jeidah, who has retained much of the original Fire Station, which was built in 1982 as a Civil Defence building and used for 30 years until the last fire engine departed in December 2012.
The original building will retain many of its features, the public spaces will be newly built to host a cafe, restaurant, bookshop, art supply shop, a cinema, and artist facilities.
The current fire engine garage is approximately 700sq metres, which will be converted into an exhibition space dedicated to promoting local and regional artists.
Hala Al Khalifa, Head of Artists in Residence programme said:
"The Doha Fire Station is a building of great importance to the community; it has served the community the past 30 years and will continue to do so through the arts with a new identity as Fire Station: Artists in Residence.
"Our goal is to support artists living in Qatar and provide a platform for creative exchange.”
There will be 20 residencies available at Fire Station and each residency will last a period of nine months.
All artists will be provided with studio spaces in the building, with 24 studios in total. The studios will be accessible 24 hours a day.
Artists will benefit from periodical visits by professional in the field of arts.
Selection of artists will be through application which will be reviewed by an independent jury.
The residency programme will first be open to local Qatari artists and residents of Qatar.
The program will later be open to regional artists. A curatorial residency opportunity is also available.
In June of each year, there will be an exhibition at the Garage Gallery to showcase the Artists in Residence productions.
With the support of QMA, artists of Fire Station will benefit from access to all museum special exhibitions, interaction with curators as well as key lectures.
In addition to hosting the end of year exhibition for resident artists, the Garage Gallery will also serve as another venue for Mathaf exhibitions.
Further the existing tower at the Fire Station will be covered in a programmable LED lighting woven into stainless steel mesh to be used for a rotating display of works of arts, projected images, installations, and announcements to the public.
Source: The Peninsula | Image: fourddoha
