Art hitches a ride

Artists usually exhibit their murals, triptychs and paintings on a gallery wall, not on a bus. But Bushra Badri, an Emirati artist, chose the latter, and placed her mixed media work on a bus, aptly named ArtBus.

This 'art on wheels' had a multi-prong purpose during the recent Art Dubai fair. The ArtBus aimed to draw attention to the burgeoning art scene in Dubai, bring together like-minded people and provide transport to various art venues.
When the project team from The Jamjar, an arts organisation that launched the ArtBus, and the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority that supports Art Dubai got together for the third edition of the fair, they had to source new artwork for the ArtBus.

"They must have seen my exhibits," says Badri, who has contributed actively at numerous events and exhibitions including The Creek Art Fair in XVA Gallery in Al Bastakiya and Emirati Expressions at Gallery One at the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi.

She was asked to present her portfolio that included her work as a student during her Bachelor of Science in Visual Communication from the School of Design at the American University of Sharjah.

The team selected three artworks from a series of five pieces from her university days. The theme integrated hand sketches and digital photographs of signage, mapping, construction and calligraphy.

"The [selected] artwork is an artistic vernacular, a slice of Dubai as we see and live it. This city, for me, is a point of convergence where different cultures form a blend that's both unique and extraordinary," says Badri.
For three days last month, the ArtBus with Badri's artistic expression of Dubai drove around the art ambit – DIFC (Dubai International Financial Centre) Gate Village, Al Bastakiya and the galleries in Al Quoz – so art lovers could sample urban, contemporary and classic art. It also had a guide to ensure a well-informed, wholesome experience.

"I was so excited to see art placed in a real life context rather than at an art venue! I enjoyed the production of my artwork on the ArtBus and I am very proud of the outcome. The same artwork was also applied to tickets, leaflets, T-shirts and bags at Art Dubai," says Badri, who has experimented with lithography alongside other digital techniques.

In the first year, the ArtBus started out as a means to get art lovers around the industrial arts area of Al Quoz, and has since become a regular feature at Art Dubai editions, adding a much-needed fillip to the local art scene.
"The ArtBus proved to be an enjoyable way to bring people together, but more importantly, it solved issues of people getting lost around Al Quoz or frustrated by the lack of parking spaces at Al Bastakiya. It took the strain out
of gallery hopping," says Rachael Brown, gallery and special projects co-ordinator of The Jamjar.

The ArtBus has also grown to become a favourite among school students. "For some, it is the first time to see art in a gallery space," says Brown. The ArtBus will hit the road again with artwork by a different artist during ArtParis, a leading modern and contemporary art fair in Abu Dhabi next November.

– Carolina D'Souza, Lifestyle Features Coordinator, Friday