Last week artist Jad El Khoury was brought back to Kuwait to create a new mural in place of his erased one, that project was just one of many that the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters have in the pipeline.
NCCAL recently underwent a leadership transition that is instigating significant changes. They want to transform the public art scene starting with a commitment to providing increased opportunities for both local and international artists. By fostering trust between artists and the public sector, they hope to cultivate a vibrant public art community in Kuwait.
Their first project launched earlier this year and they called it “Al Fenn Al Thalith Murals Project” (roughly translates to “The Third Art Murals Project). The project is an open platform for artists that streamlines the process of obtaining permits to create murals on public property and spaces. They launched the project with an open invitation for people to submit their designs and if chosen, they’d then be able to paint them onto the electrical substations in that area.
With their first projects out of the way, NCCAL are now working on the next ones. One of the future projects targets what they call “trouble zones” all over Kuwait, breathing life into them with mural art. They also want to collaborate with a variety of entities such as Jedareyat, the Australian Embassy (future project in the works), and various private sponsors/collaborators.
I also found it interesting that NCCAL supports all local artists, regardless of where they’re from. Additionally, they aim to continue inviting international artists so they could bring diverse perspectives and experiences to the local scene.
NCCAL are currently in the process of setting up social media pages and an official website that will encompass all these projects, but for now, if you’re interested in obtaining a permit to create a mural on public property, you can do so through the NCCAL website, nccal.gov.kw
4 replies on “How Kuwait’s Public Art Scene is Getting a Shake Up”
I walk by a government high school daily. The walls are just the same boring beige as the buildings. I have thought many times that they should have artistic students at the school create murals for each section, to add color, and a feeling of ownership, to their school.
Great idea.
The Real reason why NCCAL is doing a proper job lately is because the newest director of the institution is a professor of architecture at Kuwait University. He has many brilliant ideas and hopefully he receives full support from the government. Time will tell.
fix the roads