Alia Hussain Lootah: Pioneering cultural education for UAE's next generation

Growing up in the UAE, Alia Hussain Lootah found herself absorbed in fragments of material and pattern, discovering in them a language she instinctively understood. That instinct has never left her. The Emirati artist and educator is now one of the driving forces behind the UAE’s largest cultural education initiative for children, placing creativity at the centre of how the next generation experiences their heritage, their environment, and their own sense of possibility.

Lootah, co-founder of Medaf Studio, is co-leading this year’s A.R.M. Holding Children’s Programme alongside Nigerian artist Peju Alatise. The initiative, which began in 2019, has already reached more than 30,000 children since 2021. Its fifth edition comes with a theme that feels both poetic and urgent: The Future of Water.

Lootah describes herself simply: “I’ve always been a visual thinker, drawn to the way objects and materials can hold meaning and tell stories.” Growing up in the UAE, she witnessed a city in constant flux. For her, art became the way to grasp change. “Art became my language, and a way to capture moments and reflect on the evolving patterns of our city.”

She remembers how standard classrooms rarely spoke to her. “Traditional schooling didn’t speak to me in the way that creating did,” she says. The formal systems of education felt rigid compared to the freedom of expression she found in drawing and making.

A turning point came in 2014, when she joined the Salama bint Hamdan Emerging Artist Fellowship. That experience helped her place art in a professional context. “It helped me deepen my understanding of art’s language and its place in a professional context,” she explains.

Motherhood then reshaped her priorities. Raising a child clarified the role creativity plays in learning and self-discovery. “Combined with becoming a mother, it ultimately inspired me to launch my art centre, Medaf Studio, in 2017.”

Looking back now, she frames art not as luxury but as necessity. “Today, I see art as both a personal necessity and a shared gift.”

Heritage is more than background for Lootah, it is her compass. “With my heritage as an anchor, I absorb traditions, stories, and values of care, community, and resilience that continue to play out through my work.”

She insists heritage is not about nostalgia. “In education, cultural heritage can provide context, but it’s also a living link, something we pass down and see reinterpreted as each generation matures.”

This philosophy guides her teaching as much as her practice. “Whether I’m making art or designing a workshop, I try to weave in that sense of continuity alongside openness to new perspectives.”

The approach is subtle but deliberate. Children might not always realise that the exercises are tied to history, but the undercurrent of Emirati traditions — stories, crafts, or the resilience of desert life — remains present. For Lootah, that layering ensures heritage is not sealed in glass but lived, questioned, and reshaped.

Lootah never tries to separate her two professional identities. “They feed each other constantly,” she says of being both artist and educator.

“As an artist, experimentation is at the core of my practice, allowing my mind to wander and my curiosity to guide me. As an educator, I encourage children to do the same, to see questioning as essential to understanding the world.”

What she learns from teaching often circles back into her studio. “Teaching and interacting with children regularly inspire my own work. The openness of the young mind reminds me to approach my practice with care, to not explain the world, but to create space for new ways of seeing.”

That cycle, where her art practice gains new life through education, and her teaching gains depth through her studio work, has become her signature.

The clearest confirmation that she was on the right track came with Medaf Studio. “The most defining moment in my career was realising that my work at Medaf Studio was creating a real impact on the community,” she says.

She recalls watching children and adults engage with art differently when given the space. “Seeing both adults and children experience art not just as an activity, but as a language and a form of self-expression, made me feel I was exactly where I needed to be.”

The effect went beyond enjoyment, it changed confidence, relationships, and how people perceived their own voice. “It confirmed for me that creativity can connect people, build confidence, and open new ways of seeing the world and that my role was to help make that possible.”

Lootah also places herself within the larger context of the UAE’s growing cultural scene. “The UAE’s art scene has a fluidity that carries both regional context and global relevance.”

Her role, she says, is double. “I see my role as twofold: to contribute as an artist, creating work that speaks to our changing realities, and to nurture the next generation through education.”

She believes sustainability will depend on linking those roles. “The strength of our cultural future depends on how well we connect these two. How we build a sustainable art scene and ensure young people feel they belong in it.”

This year marks the first time the A.R.M. Holding Children’s Programme is co-led by two artists. For Lootah, the collaboration has been about dialogue. “Collaboration, for me, is about listening as much as contributing.”

She describes how Alatise’s cultural background shaped the workshops. “Peju brings such a rich perspective to the theme for this year’s A.R.M. Children’s Programme, rooted in her own cultural practice around water. While our practices are distinct, we share a common language through art, and combining our voices allows us to offer the children a more layered and dynamic experience.”

Water as a theme speaks directly to both identity and urgency. “Water is deeply tied to the UAE’s identity, from our coastlines to our history of pearl diving, and it’s also one of the most pressing environmental concerns of our time,” she says.

She explains her personal connection. “Personally, I see it as both a symbol of life and a reminder of our responsibility as caretakers of the planet.”

That responsibility is translated into hands-on workshops. “In the A.R.M. Children’s Programme, we bring this to life through tactile, interactive workshops that let children see and feel water’s transformative power, while imagining ways to protect it.”

The process is less about theory and more about experience: children pouring, touching, and visualising water in new ways, then connecting that to the wider conversation on sustainability.

Over 30,000 children have taken part since 2021, and Lootah is struck by certain recurring moments. “One of the moments that stays with me the most is when children meet an actual artist in person and suddenly realise that this isn’t just a hobby, it can be a real career path.”

She describes the visible change. “You can almost see the shift in their eyes, that spark of possibility, and it’s a reminder of how powerful exposure and representation can be.”

That moment of recognition, of possibility opening, has become a quiet measure of success for her. Asked about the message she hopes to pass on, Lootah answers without hesitation. “That their voices matter, and that creativity is a powerful way to express themselves.”

She links creativity with empathy. “Caring for the world around them, whether it’s water, community, or culture, begins with curiosity and empathy.”

She also frames art as a way to process overwhelming change. “We all experience moments where the changes around us feel overwhelming, but using art to interpret those changes in their own way can bring calm, clarity, and a sense of agency.”

Looking to the future, she wants the programme to continue to expand. “The richness and influence of the programme to me is what makes it so special. Its ability to bring together diverse voices, artistic approaches, and cultural perspectives is what gives it depth, and I hope that continues to evolve.”

She sees digital reach as the next frontier. “A stronger digital presence would allow us to reach children across the UAE and beyond, creating a resource they can revisit long after the workshops end.”

And her vision extends beyond this year. “I hope it leaves a lasting legacy, helping to embed sustainable art education into the core curriculum, while inviting more diverse artists to expand young minds and connect creativity with environmental stewardship.”