| Issue 2
Profile: Sheikha Al Mayassa Al Thani
Her Excellency Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani has played a pioneering role in the fields of culture, education, and outreach, spearheading and supporting a number of local and international organizations.
As Chairperson of Qatar Museums( QM), she guides the vision for future museums and cultural projects, with the aim of transforming Qatar into a leading cultural and education center in the region and around the world. In this role, H. E. Sheikha Al Mayassa oversaw a constellation of museums, developed international projects, and made significant purchases for the Qatari national collections.
As she notes,“ most contemporary art is provocative.” Bold public commissions— including Richard Serra’ s lofty abstract sculpture 7 and Damien Hirst’ s The Miraculous Journey, a monumental 14-part bronze sequence depicting a developing fetus— show her dedication to bringing pieces that stimulate debate and artistic engagement to Qatar.
Bridging East and West
The Museum of Islamic Art, the flagship project of QM, embodies Qatar’ s vision of bridging East and West, as well as past and present.“ Art and culture is a religion we can all practice,” she says.“ People have said,‘ Let’ s build bridges,’ and frankly, I want to do more than that. I would like to break the walls of ignorance between East and West. Art is very powerful because it has no boundaries and you don’ t need to belong to any country or religion
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