ABU DHABI: In collaboration with Swiss watchmakers Richard Mille, Louvre Abu Dhabi is hosting the fourth edition of the annual exhibition and competition “Art Here” from Sept. 20 to Dec. 15.

With more than 200 applicants from all over the Arab world, the Art Here award is offering a $60 thousand prize for its winner.

This year, five artists were selected to showcase their work under the theme “Awakenings,” with the winning artist to be selected by a jury and announced in December.

The artists are Sarah Almehairi, Lamya Gargash, Ferielle Doulain-Zouari, Moataz Nasr and Nicene Kossentini.

Emirati artist Gargash interpreted the theme with a giant beach ball sculpture made entirely of sand from the UAE.

Gargash explained that her piece “Debutante Ball” was inspired by a derogatory comment someone made toward her when she was younger, saying the UAE was just a “giant sandbox.”

“I consider it (the art) a response to something that I experienced years ago. A negative comment, a provocative comment that was pointed at me. And I took it to heart,” she said.

“The theme ‘Awakenings’ speaks volumes about transience and finding your way. So for me, it is a rebirth. It’s a renaissance,” she said.

Egyptian artist Nasr decided to give up the field of economics to pursue his passion.

“​​My mother was an artist. I used to sit with her, watching her where she’s painting. And that was the best thing in my life. Just sitting behind her. Seeing how colors keep mixing until something comes out all of the sudden over there in front of me,” he said.

Nasr describes himself as a history buff and said his work is inspired by Arab history. His piece “Brides of the Sky” tells the story of women during the Mongolian invasion of Egypt.

“What I’m trying to do as an artist is bring a big loop, a magnified loop and put it on things that people can pass by without seeing and tell them: Look, this is your heritage.

“Maybe this is going to awaken something in them and make them understand something about themselves, about the history, the heritage,” he said.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal and US Trade Representative Katherine Tae on Thursday held talks focused on enhancing bilateral trade relations between the once close allies, with both sides agreeing to schedule the key Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) talks “soon.”

TIFA serves as a platform for Pakistan and the US to improve market access, promote bilateral trade and investment, resolve disputes, and work on trade-related issues between the two countries. 

Pakistan and the US took part in high-level trade talks in Feb. 2023 when both countries participated in the 9th Pakistan-United States Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) Council meeting. That meeting took place after seven years. 

Khan held a virtual meeting with Tai during which he said America remains Pakistan’s “top trading destination, expressing his country’s desire to further expand this partnership. 

“During the meeting, it was confirmed that the next Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) meeting would be scheduled soon, along with discussions on agriculture, textiles, women’s empowerment, IT and E-commerce,” the commerce ministry said in a statement. 

Khan highlighted Pakistan’s “strong performance” in the agriculture sector, particularly in mangoes and dates, the ministry said, adding that he also spoke about the potential for growth in value-added agro-services.

Tai acknowledged Pakistan’s contributions, particularly its agricultural exports, and praised the quality of Pakistani mangoes, the statement said. 

“Minister Jam Kamal invited Tai to attend Pakistan’s TEXPO in October,” the commerce ministry said. It said Tai was grateful for the invitation and expressed interest in attending the event. 

In return, Tai invited Kamal to visit Washington to further explore trade opportunities between the two countries.