Arts and Culture

In the year that saw the passing of Sultan Qaboos bin Said, an award-winning Omani novel catches fire in book clubs as it explores the tensions and hopes beneath the surface of the extraordinary changes that the sultan brought to the country.

During the coronavirus lockdown, young Emiratis set up a platform to support emerging local artists and engage with a wider audience to inspire curiosity and raise awareness about the local art scene.

Kuwaiti activism against book censorship yields a partial victory, but expression remains strictly regulated through press and publication laws across the Gulf.

Inspired by love, longing, and the desert environment, female poets have long contributed to Nabati poetry. Now, women are breaking norms, refuting the notion that women and men are on different levels in poetry.

Public opposition to social and political normalization with Israel appears to be holding fast among most nationals, even as some governments allow more room for advocates of Gulf-Israel relations to make their case.

“Al Raheel,” a play written by a young Emirati woman, made its world premiere in January in Abu Dhabi. With its all-female Emirati cast, this poetic and innovative production shakes many assumptions about theater and what it means to be a young woman in today’s United Arab Emirates.

Gulf countries have celebrated the arrival of the holy month of Ramadan under unprecedented and strict precautionary measures to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. Yet Gulf citizens are still finding ways to pray communally and sustain community.

Saudi filmmakers came late to the craft, limited by the lack of opportunities for training and imposed by Saudi Arabia’s conservative sociopolitical order. Today, filmmakers are viewed as avatars of the top-down transformation of Saudi society.