The Emirate of Sharjah was recently adorned with two artistic events. While the seventh edition of the International Photography Festival “Exposure 2023” returned, the emirate’s most important buildings and architectural edifices shone with aesthetics and flow of light through the “Sharjah Lights 2023” festival, which sheds light on the creations of architectural art in various places.
The “Expo Center” witnessed the “Exposure 2023” shows, which are amazing collections of wonderful images created by photographers from all over the world, and decorated with dialogues on humanitarian, journalistic, environmental and aesthetic topics, as visitors enjoyed wandering among the corridors of amazing individual and group exhibitions that inspire a deep appreciation for photography. It provides the opportunity to learn more about the limitless potential of the camera in enhancing the visual landscape, documenting events, people, places and things, and creating a memory that reflects the language embodied in the images and its powerful impact on the lives of people on the planet.
light aesthetics
Visitors and residents of Sharjah enjoyed the picturesque performances of the “Sharjah Lights Festival 2023”, which were accompanied by music in 13 different locations on the facades of the emirate’s most important buildings and edifices, which are distinguished by their elegant architectural designs and beautiful decorations. Where “Sharjah Fort” shines with a light show that tells the cultural and historical value of the fort. The festival presented a show on “Al Dhaid Fort” titled “Hope Beats Again”, about the biography of the ancestors of the region, who defied circumstances with heroism and courage. The light show in the “University City Hall” embodied the concepts of hope, determination and determination to achieve goals. The “Village of Lights” included recreational games suitable for all ages, with a special exhibition of figures inspired by light under the starry sky of Sharjah. Under the title “We thrive together in the homeland of tolerance, hope and peace”, the light shows on the Hamriyah Municipality building reflected the values of the land of the UAE, while the “Al Rafisah Dam” show was characterized by a creative, forward-looking idea for the future, to ask the audience a question: “Where will your journey take you?”, and revolves around A lone traveler who worked hard and determined to build a landmark that would last for decades and contribute to the prosperity and development of life for all around him. The “Clock Tower” show in Kalba, titled “The Blue Hour”, shed light on a contemplative experience, with which the audience travels in a unique audio-visual scene that celebrates a specific moment in life called the Blue Hour.
The “Sharjah Lights Festival 2023” showed the aesthetics of the architectural details and decorations of the most important mosques in the emirate through light, such as: Al Noor Mosque on the Khalid Lake Corniche, which is one of the most beautiful icons of Islamic architecture, and the largest mosque in Sharjah in the emirate, along with the Sheikh Rashid bin Ahmed Al Qasimi Mosque. in Dibba Al-Hisn.
It is noteworthy that the sites of the “Sharjah Light Festival 2023” include: Al Noor Mosque, Khalid Lake Corniche, Sharjah Mosque, Al Majaz Waterfront, as well as Sharjah Fort, Al Hamriya Municipality Building, and Al Dhaid Fort. In addition to the Rafisah Dam in Khorfakkan, the Clock Tower in Kalba, the Sheikh Rashid bin Ahmed Al Qasimi Mosque in Dibba Al-Hisn, as well as the headquarters building of the “Be’ah” company.
Exposure 2023
In an artistic event, the largest of its kind in the Middle East and one of the most prominent and important photography festivals in the world, the Sharjah Government Media Office organized, in “Expo”, last February, the seventh session of the International Photography Festival “Exposure 2023”, with the participation of more than 100 filmmakers. The most famous photographers and directors who display 1,794 images distributed over 68 individual and group exhibitions. Their work celebrates travel, nature, photojournalism, portraiture, documentaries, short films, motion pictures, and street photography. It presents to professionals and amateurs the art of photography photographic and visual creations from the works of leading international photographers.
The festival aims to consolidate its position among the most prominent integrated destinations for audiences from all segments of society who love photography, whether professionals or amateurs, who use photography to document their memories and daily lives and to highlight important issues, with the growing role of photography in various economic, scientific and artistic disciplines, especially for specialists in the arts. Film directing and for the artistic and media workers.
Thousands of visitors joined the activities of the festival, which presented a rich program that included 41 seminars, discussion sessions, 53 workshops, and an integrated set of activities and events, hosted by the “platform x”, with a variety of screenings, cinematic films, dialogues and workshops presented by a group of the brightest stars in the world of photography and cinematography. An inspiring experience that constitutes a qualitative addition to the festival program as part of the festival’s endeavor to enhance audience interaction and educate them in various educational and entertainment experiences.
Climate change
One of the most prominent activities of the festival was the holding of the second session of the “Environmental Summit” under the slogan “Climate Change”, which was inaugurated by His Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and Chairman of the Sharjah Media Council, and a group of world’s leading photographers who were famous for their work participated in it. And their exhibitions that deal with issues and efforts to protect the environment, and they devoted their photography trips to documenting the manifestations of environmental imbalances that threaten the future of the planet, as they presented in dialogue seminars and discussion sessions part of the visions and conclusions that they reached from their artistic and practical experiences.
photo market
The “photo market” exclusively published publications of the works of the best photographers in the world, as the artworks offered for sale included a wide variety of images that meet different tastes and orientations, starting with landscapes, wildlife and modern architecture, and ending with plastic photography in its various schools of expression, abstraction, symbolism, surrealism and realism, which guarantees finding Lovers of acquiring works of art on topics, paintings and colors that meet their aspirations.
Awards and equipment
Exposure 2023 hosted a group of book signing ceremonies, the festival’s award ceremony, and the “trade fair,” which provides a platform for experts in the manufacture and sale of photographic equipment by displaying a variety of the latest photographic equipment of various types and purposes, including what is used in commercial photography, arts, fashion, architecture, and sports. And space photography with drones. The festival provided an interesting experience for its audience of emerging and professional photographers, as well as amateurs and mobile photography enthusiasts.
