Dubai For the second successive day the 2018 Dubai International Arabian Horse Championship witnessed some intense competition particularly in the younger divisions.
After Admired, a handsome bay owned by Saudi Arabia’s sons of Abdullah Bin Mohammad Al Subaiee, the famous breeders/owners of the Riyad-based Al Muawd Stud, won Division A of the Year Colts, it was the turn of Dubai Arabian Stud and Ajman Stud the grab the spotlight.
points were scored by Mahboob to win the Yearling Colts Class
Mahboob, a nice-looking bay, impressed his judges with his conformation and movement, to nail Division B of the Yearling Colts category.
Mahboob scored 92.002 points to leave D Bareq (90.90) and Maher Al Sayed (90.90) battling for the runner-up sport which the former won on ‘type’.
It was then the turn of Ajman Stud to take over proceedings at the stately and lively arena, located in the Dubai World Trade Centre’s Zabeel Hall.
Aj Kafu, an imposing grey, looked every inch the winner with his striking good looks and elegant movement when scoring 93.202 points.
The Dubai Arabian Horse Stud claimed their second rosette of the afternoon when D Seraj caught the judge’s fancy in the 3-year-old Colts Class.
A well-built grey colt, D Seraj looked to be enjoying himself every bit and he showed off his looks and movement. Meanwhile, at the adjoining conference hall at the Dubai International Horse Fair (DIHF), visitors were entertained by exhibits from artists with a passion for horses.
The event, has a total of 10 artists exhibiting their works of various media including bronze, acrylics, copper, fibreglass, leather, cloth and more.
“Horses have played a central role in so many civilisations’ history and it [equestrian art] has, over the years, become a fascination for me as an artist,” said Paris-based artist Raghad who is exhibiting at the show.
Born in Iraq, Raghad studied at the Institute of Fine Art in Baghdad and furthered her tertiary education in France at Paris-Sorbonne University, which included the morphology and anatomy of horses. As a sculptor, she discovered her love for equestrian art using iron, copper, fibreglass, resin, wood and bronze.
At DIHF, Raghad has a variety of pieces available for sale and will produce commissioned pieces on request.
At the Bangkok-based Art to Art Gallery stand, paintings and sculptures of Thai artists, Niran Charoenpong and Chaturong Kittinithiphaisan, are receiving much interest from discerning art collectors at the show.
The striking equestrian paintings by Charoenpong, who is also an art professor at the Suan Rajabhat University in Bangkok, are of acrylics on canvas using a knife palette. The artist specialises in horse-themed works,
Thai temples, flowers and trees. Kittinithiphaisan specialises in solid bronze animal sculptures and is able to sculpt any creature, says said Art to Art spokesperson, Jean Michel Michel.
“This is our first visit exhibition in Dubai because we thought the Horse Fair was a good opportunity to introduce the region’s horse industry and art collectors to these artists,” says Michel Michel.
Handmade silver and gold jewellery interwoven with real horse hair was displayed by Coda di Cavallo, a Riyadh-based company in Saudi Arabia.
Coda di Cavallo, meaning “horsetail”, was launched 30 years ago when the company owners, who are passionate about horses, wanted to provide the “possibility to keep your horse with you all the time,” said Madiha Daba, Executive Director of Sales.
Elsewhere at the show, attractions include the popular Horse Auction where Arabian purebred horses from local studs will be available for viewing, bidding and buying.
Held tomorrow (Saturday) from 11am onwards, the auction will have over 100 purebred Arabian horse breeds on sale. Prospective buyers and members of the public can feel the thrill of a live auction with prices and stock to suit every budget.
