Chairman of Qatar Museums Board of Trustees inaugurates 'Foresight' exhibition in Liwan

Her Excellency Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al Thani, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Qatar Museums, inaugurated the exhibition "Farsight", which brings together 32 works created by 16 artists and designers in five residency and collaboration programs organized by Liwan Design Studios and Labs.

The exhibition, which runs until the end of January 2027 at Liwan as part of the Doha Design Biennale 2026, presents a comprehensive vision of the ideas, materials and creative practices that have resulted in Liwan's residency programs to date.

The title of the exhibition, "Farsight", expresses the idea that design transcends form and function, based on cultural memory, inherited knowledge and practices associated with materials, while keeping the field open for experimentation, reinterpretation and the development of new methods of manufacture.

The exhibition also highlights Qatar as a location for design production, where local materials, industries, workshops and landscapes are a starting point for making and experimentation. Throughout the exhibition, materials such as clay, palm fronds, wood, fibers, sand, glass, metals and upholstery fabrics are transformed into pieces of furniture, utensils, installations and sculptures, re-reading cultural knowledge from the perspective of contemporary design.

Aisha Nasser Al Suwaidi, Director of Liwan Studios, Design Labs and Art Curators, said that the exhibition brings together the results of a number of residency programs organized by Liwan, and gives us the opportunity to reflect on the evolution of these meetings and various aspects of cooperation over time, noting that the residency programs give artists and designers a space for research, experimentation and direct work with artisans, materials and production networks. The exhibition reflects how these experiences can yield new works, while remaining connected to the knowledge, traditions and environments that shape the design of this region."

Through the residency programs, Liwan provided opportunities for artists and designers to collaborate with artisans, workshops and production facilities, and explore materials and natural environments in Qatar and beyond, contributing to the development of design practices that combine traditional knowledge and contemporary innovation.

The programs included the establishment of "Ideas from Industry" in collaboration with "From", with the participation of Asma Shalkami, Abdullah Al-Obaidli and Noura Al-Hanzab to explore the potential of wood, glass, metals and upholstery fabrics, and the establishment of "Shaping and Shaping the Future", in collaboration with the Mana School of Crafts and Design in France, included the works of Aya Zeina, Haya Abou Al-Saad, Rima Abu Hassan and Bashayer Al-Khulaifi, focusing on sustainability and the reuse of materials.

The programs also included Liwan's "Oasis: Our Design Ecosystem", curated by Asma Darwish, which brought together designers and artisans to reintroduce elements of heritage in contemporary styles. Her most notable works include "Hayakum" by Christian Mohaded, "Athar" by Noura Al-Mulhem, and "Land-Sea" by Jassim Nasrallah.

These experiences reflect Liwan's role in supporting artists and designers through research, experimentation, collaborative production, and strengthening Qatar's design ecosystem.

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