The Years of Culture initiative, affiliated with Qatar Museums, is participating in the mural festival currently being held in Montreal, Canada, as part of local and international participations, to create artworks that redefine the public art scene.
The participation comes as part of the Qatar-Canada-Mexico 2026 Year of Culture, which celebrates the cultural ties that bind Qatar to both countries, through an annual program full of art exhibitions, performing arts shows, educational initiatives and community meetings.
Representing the State of Qatar at the festival is calligrapher and artist Fatima Al-Sharshani, who presents a new artwork, created outdoors in front of the audience, inspired by the phrase "Ultimately, we all become stories" by Canadian writer Margaret Atwood. She employs her artwork to explore the traces left by human beings through actions, relationships, and life experiences.
On this occasion, calligrapher and artist Fatima Al-Sharshani explained that the phrase from which she drew inspiration for her work touched her heart, as it is a simple set of words that encapsulates the entire journey of life, and that the mural serves as a moment of self-reflection and an invitation to question.
Qatar’s participation in the festival paves the way for a new phase of artistic exchange between Qatar and Canada, the first outlines of which were drawn following the visit of Nicolas Monricco, founder of the mural festival and director of the “Landmark” platform, to Doha last December, coinciding with the activities of the World Walls Mural Festival, which resulted in the formulation of a partnership based on artistic exchange, and provides opportunities for artists in both countries to integrate into different creative environments and connect with new audiences.
Nicolas Monricaud said that his visit to Doha had become a bridge for creative exchange between two cities (Doha and Montreal) that share a common vision about the power of art in the public space, expressing his hope that Canadian artists would participate in Qatari events, stemming from the partnership between the two countries, based on cooperation that allows the flow of ideas, talents and stories in both directions.
The Mural Festival in Canada is one of the most prominent public art festivals in North America, during which Montreal’s famous Boulevard Saint Lawrence is transformed into an open-air art gallery, attracting artists and visitors from all over the world.
It is worth noting that the Years of Culture initiative was launched in 2012, with the aim of establishing strong and sustainable relations between Qatar and various countries around the world through joint cooperation in the fields of arts, education, heritage, sports and innovation.
Calligrapher and artist Fatima Al-Sharshani is known for her style that combines Arabic calligraphy with contemporary mural art. She was commissioned to create special artworks for the Paris Saint-Germain football team, in addition to her participation in the Jidari Art initiative.
Al-Sharshani chose Arabic calligraphy as the focus of her work, due to its contemplative and calming effect, which made her master the Diwani, Maghrebi and Thuluth scripts, relying on high-level skills in fine arts. Her work is characterized by simplicity and depth of meaning, as she embodies the letters in a striking style, reflecting her design choices and the inherent beauty of Arabic letters.
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