Rasha Nahas
‘Al-Madini’
The acclaimed Berlin-based Palestinian singer-songwriter released her first Arabic-language single last month. It’s a sweet tale of chance meetings, and Nahas’ musicianship —stripped-back and less theatrical than much of her English-language output — instils it with a moving sense of melancholy, which is complimented by simplicity of the black-and-white video.
Usfuur & Lutum
‘Contemporary Keepsakes’
UAE-based Syrian designer Yara Tlass — founder of jewelry brand Usfuur — has collaborated with Dubai-based ceramic practice Lutum on a collection of “bespoke lifestyle objects.” “With a shared understanding of craftsmanship, Usfuur and Lutum are inspired together by earth elements, notions of movement, and visual poetry,” a press release explains. The handmade collection consists of “contemporary heirlooms” that “act as both sculptures and functional objects.”
Frida
‘Dawararan’
This is the lead single from the Lebanese singer’s latest album “The Freedom to Be,” which was released early this month. Frida describes the album as “both an ode to love and an invitation to embody freedom, to dance to the music of the spheres and to sing our joy of being, fully here in this now.” The haunting “Dawararan” is a good introduction to the record’s blend of classical Arab and Western soul influences.
Neelima Azad
‘Inhale Peace, Exhale Happiness’
The self-taught Indian photographer was one of the winners of the Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum International Photography Awards’ November Instagram competition “All Things Expo” with this beautifully composed shot of a yoga practitioner at the site of Expo 2020 Dubai. It’s the latest in a number of prizes for Dubai-based Azad, who also won an Emerging Talent award from World Art Dubai last year.
