The core idea of the house is a 'shared table' that transforms into a temporary studio, where students and faculty meet in an interactive setting that allows for the exchange of dialogue, ideas, and experiences. Artist Asma Youssef Ahmad also explores in her work 'A Fist' the concept of holding onto and letting go of memory. Meanwhile, the 'International House' celebrates the Japanese philosophy that finds beauty in emptiness. It brings together three contemporary artists: artist (h.o.), who presented a work consisting of lamps that gently illuminate the invisible trace of human presence; artist Yasuaki Unishi, whose work 'Sculpture Based on Emptiness' traces the contours of mountains and redefines the meaning of mass and boundaries; and artist Aki Inomata, who in 'Yesterday's Sky' documents fleeting memory and preserves it as a delicate model inside a glass vessel, in an experience that touches on the idea of the transient and ephemeral as a value in itself. The 'Institutions House' represents a vibrant community space that brings together a select group of creative institutions and design centers from across the country, serving as an open platform for meetings, reflection, and collective production. She stated: 'The Sakka houses are a fundamental pillar of the festival, specialized platforms that combine exhibition, experimentation, and dialogue, offering artistic works and inspiring installations that provide the public with an opportunity to interact with art and discover new creative experiences that embody the essence of Dubai's cultural identity, reflecting the uniqueness of its artistic scene and the strength of its cultural and creative industries, as well as highlighting the ability of creators to innovate and their unique artistic skills and visions.' The 14th edition of the Sakka Festival for Arts and Design presents inspiring and innovative artistic experiences that celebrate memory, identity, and belonging. Held under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktum, Chairperson of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, in the historic Al Shindagha district, the festival features over 450 creators and artists from the UAE, the region, and the world, distinguished by the uniqueness of their productions and artistic visions. The festival includes 16 houses with diverse artistic specializations, each offering a variety of artistic experiences, including distinctive installations, sculptures, and interactive spaces inspired by the festival's theme 'Visions of Dubai: Narrating Our Future Identity.' Shaima Rashid Al Suwaidi, Executive Director of the Arts, Design, and Literature Sector at Dubai Culture, noted that the 'Sakka houses' are spaces that celebrate the diversity of ideas, artists' visions, and their creative practices, which address various topics with innovative methods that reflect the richness of the local artistic movement. Among them is artist Sara Kamar's work 'Temporal Tracking,' in which the precision of watchmaking is transformed into a poetic system based on chance and gestures. The house also hosts the exhibition 'Things,' which addresses everyday objects as media for storytelling and memory, while artist Haifa Haj presents the project 'The Chair,' which re-examines the plastic chair as a daily object with deep connotations. The experience is complemented by the 'Love' design initiative and the Visual Culture Library through the work 'Innovation Systems.' The 'Memory House' hosts the interactive installation 'Future Scriptorium,' which turns collective imagination into a living archive of ideas for Dubai's future, along with the work 'Memory of the Future - The Dubai as It Should Be Remembered,' an installation that embodies the evolution of Dubai's cultural memory through visual molds and aromatic puffs, created by Zaineh Loutah, Jassem Al Nakhi, Jumana Al Hashemi, Asim Al Qasim, and Zainab Al Mousawi, under the artistic direction of Mohammed Kazim. The 'Photography House,' under the artistic direction of Ahlam Al Banai, presents 11 distinctive works that document Dubai's unseen stories and the moments that shape its present. She highlighted that the launch of the 'International House,' which celebrates Japanese philosophy this year, marks a significant milestone in the festival's journey, as it is held for the first time as a space to explore global artistic practices, opening new horizons for local talents and reflecting the authority's efforts to build bridges between communities, enhance cultural exchange, and establish Dubai's position as a global cultural hub, a cradle of creativity, and a meeting point for talents. The list of houses in the Sakka Festival for Arts and Design includes the 'Gulf House,' under the artistic direction of Yara Ayyoub, which brings together the works of 21 artists from the Gulf region, each presenting their own interpretation of the word 'headache,' not as a physical pain but in the context of its use in the Gulf dialect. The works are diverse: artist Ali Harimel presents in his work 'Out of Service' a giant telephone representing the remnants of an old connection; Saudi artist 'Alif' presents his series of works 'My Mother's Joke,' drawing inspiration from Gulf popular humor; and Badar Alawi, in his visual work 'Daily Routine,' depicts a white screen on which notifications from social media flow at an accelerating pace, accompanied by loud sounds, a direct simulation of the state of digital saturation. The 'Void Design' house presents the work 'The Fleeting Shadow' by Special Sense, an immersive artistic experience that transforms the house's courtyard into a space for contemplation of time and urban transformations. Meanwhile, the 'Ministry of Culture' house hosts the exhibition 'Creative Expressions,' bringing together the works of artists who have received grants under the National Program for Culture and Creativity Grants and the Creative Market Program, as well as participants in the artistic residency program. Through the 'Barza Art' project, which reimagines the 'Barza' (Council) as a space for meeting, contemplation, counsel, and hospitality, the 'Visual Arts House,' under the artistic direction of Mouna Lout, explores the concepts of identity, memory, and belonging through a series of inspiring artistic works.
