Rain, Glorious Rain...

Something quite remarkable has been taking place here in Kuwait - we've had rain! There's been a proper, constant, drizzle for the last two days or so of bona-fide water coming from the sky... The weather's almost Scandinavian in character (well, late Summer in Scandinavia) with mist, not dust, blurring the horizon. We've even been wearing sweaters of late...

It's been fun, and a bit nostalgic, and it will probably 'drizzle out' soon. But it's been unique...

The Extraordinary Ordinary - Public Seating...

A throne in Salwa...

They're everywhere, yet, most of the time one hardly notices them. They come in all shapes and sizes, colours and conditions. They can be found in residential neighbourhoods as well as in various commercial areas and retail settings. And almost all of them seem to be examples of recycled and readopted seating from somewhere else. These chairs, benches and sofas have been given a second chance, a second life, to fulfil their intended purpose, each moved to, and marking a locale (usually a shady spot by a gate or entrance or a position with a clear sight-line over a particular area) where such a lingering conveniences are needed. Often missing an arm-rest of perhaps a section of their back, these seats, nevertheless, being devoid of the more 'cosmetic' roles performed by newer and more manicured chairs, achieve their objectives perhaps even better than some of their more recently purchased counterparts...

Above and below - public seating in Bneid Al-Gar...

A 'tree-chair' in SAM Street in Salmiya...

A chair with a splinted leg in Salmiya...

Above and below - Lounging in Bneid Al-Gar...


Siamese Sofas...

Strike a pose - skewed stripes...

Multiple choice chair(s)...

Group lounge (a flock/ school of sofas)...

Bench amongst columns...

Movies on a Roof-top...

It was a cinematic night. It was a magical night. It was a Cinemagical night...

Located above an electronics store on SAM Street in Salmiya, the Cinemagic roof-top screen - which is reached through a discreet, cramped elevator squeezed between a stairwell and small kiosk/ bakala, from which an external, somewhat precariously cantilevering, steel gangplank is transcended before one enters the main elevated space - certainly provides a delightful sight for any (culturally deprived) sore eyes. Beyond the fact that the set-up is superb, with surprisingly comfortable seating, free drinks and popcorn, a great screen and sound system, the choice of, somewhat subversive, unadulterated and unaltered movies are what provide the most inspiring and stimulating justification for a visit (and the follow up re-visits)... This was my first sojourn to the outside screen (I had the privilege to be invited by friends to Cinemagic's luxurious screening-room the week before) and it turned out to be a true revelation. Having arrived with no preconceptions, the experience of watching a Swedish vampire movie (Let the Right One In) turned out, even for someone who's first choice usually doesn't involve horror flicks, to be a sublime experience (and I didn't even need to bother with the subtitles)...

This is what Kuwait has been deprived of, what it craves, what it needs more of... What is the contemporary rendition of Kuwaiti experimental music, dance, opera, fashion, photography, art, architecture, design..?! What are the cultural elements that will be defining the identity of tomorrow's Kuwait..? Allowing oneself to be exposed to such ideas, arts and thoughts from elsewhere are, surprisingly enough, amongst the most effective ways to come to grips with ones own role and character, ones own uniqueness... Having the opportunity to experience the variety and richness of different types of notions and thought patterns which digress from the social and cultural patterns one is used to, is amongst the most catalytic means for advancing the related disciplines at home.

What Cinemagic offers needs to be given a celebratory whisper and covert pat on the back, as what it provides is currently peerless, but also fragile and something that might easily be shattered. Let's quietly scream its praises until, hopefully in the not too distant future, what it has come to represent can be shouted about off the roof-tops of Salmiya and elsewhere...

An adjacent building under construction...

Designer Blotches - Exploring Censorship in Kuwait...

I teach a class in Contemporary Art & Thought at the Art & Design Department of Kuwait University. This term the class is solely attended by final year students in Graphic Design, although the department also offers a degree in Interior Design. Our first project this term dealt with censorship, a somewhat difficult and sensitive subject matter particularly here in Kuwait. The project was initially catalysed by a apparent inconsistency observed in the censoring of various magazines at a local mall's news stand, where the censoring of the various body parts depicted on the magazine covers varied from one publication to another (for an earlier blog entry discussing these please click here). It was also partly triggered by the, call it, crudeness of the current method of blocking any potentially objectionable sections of an image, which usually involves using thick, black ink daub or marker streak to blotch out the sensitive body parts, unwanted beverages, or other, in Kuwait, unsuitable element.

Title image and above - Customized 'blotches' by Muneera Al-Qinaie

The criteria for the project were stipulated in the following fashion...

The students could:

A)

Aim, through their work, to question and reset where the threshold between acceptable and unacceptable lies. In other words, through reasoning and logic establish a justification for why a revision of the current methods of censorship is called for and, even through changed, won't necessarily contradict any of the sensitivities or do harm to the general population to whom their work will be exposed. Establish an updated and empirical rationale and method for how the aims of censorship could be amended and achieved...

B)

Accept and understand the current rules, but try to find an alternative means to achieve them. In other words, the student should consent to the current degree of censorship, but try to 'design their way' around it without necessarily compromising the original aims. Establish a more 'eloquent' and 'designed' way to achieve the same objectives the censurer currently does mostly by blotching and blurring...

C)

A bit of both A) and B)...

Noura Al-Omar's intentionally mixed messages that consequently aim to neutralize some of the more provoking aspects of the image...

The related issues were discussed and debated in class, with all the students present, as well as pondered over during one-to-one or one-to-two tutorials, which allowed for a more individual and bespoke scrutinization of the projects...

Above and below are a few examples of the results (comments and feedback much welcomed)...

Aysha Al-Houli's folded image. Provides the reader with the option of either leaving the image as is, or unfolding the photo to reveal the image in its unaltered state...

Above and below - the 'peel off' designer blotch, by Maha Barakat. Allows the user to either peel off, or leave be the thematically reflective sticker...

The act of peeling off the censoring sticker entails its own subtle coreography...

The 'Rope Blotch', by Bibi Al-Wazzan which, like the example above, provides a choice for the reader to either reveal or not reveal the image, and turns the act of 'revelation' into a mini-performance in its own right...

Above and below - various 'before & after' examples of thematic switches by Dana Mohsen Al-Edwah. Camouflage above...

A selective Switch...

An anthropomorphic censoring...

Selective distortion...

Blanket branding as a means to censor, by Hessa Shams Al-Deen...

Above and below - a 'designer blur' and shadow by Ghadeer Al-Awadhi...

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A brief reminder of how magazines are currently censored (left - T3 Magazine, right - source unknown)...

SAM St. (Salem Al-Mubarak Street) - Initial Analysis & Proposals...

A birdseye view of SAM St. (core image sourced from Google Earth)...

This submission was initially posed on the smArchitecture blog, but as it has a direct bearing on Kuwait I thought it would also be appropriate to include here...

In collaboration with the members of the re:kuwait blog (architects Barrak Al-Babtain, Jasem Nadoum and Amenah Benjasem) as well as architect Aisha Al-Sager, I've been exploring the idea of pedestrianizing and revitalizing Salem Al-Mubarak Street (SAM St.) in Salmiya. The focus here is on the commercial stretch of the street, between the Fourth Ring Road and the Al-Salam Complex (the cylindrical, now former, residential building at its western end; more pictures of this in a future post). The collaboration began after much 'tooing-and frowing' between the parties various blogs, where we all were lamenting about the various urban, with a particular focus on the ambulatory, shortcomings of Kuwait in comparison to other, even regional, locations. These virtual communiques eventually turned into an actual meeting between the above mentioned individuals at a local coffee-shop, where a number of options were discussed for what and how something could be done to improve the situation. We eventually decided to focus on Salem Al-Mubarak street, which seemed to have the right 'bones' (foundations) to develop into a pedestrianized area. The ultimate aim is to do a, or a set of, short videos and perhaps a publication dealing with various aspects of urbanism in Kuwait.

Below are some of the initial musings (slides from the lecture), introduced for the first time at Wednesday's presentation at DAI (thanks everyone for coming, it was fun!). They were here used in conjunction (as a linked design to) the Kuwait School Manifesto's maxim number eight, which suggests that Kuwait could/ should be developed as the Design Capital of the Middle-East, something that's not too far fetched as, in comparison to Kuwait's neighbours which all have well developed plans to enhance their cultural standings but which none, however, have laid a particular emphasis on design, opening up a potential niche for how Kuwait could distinguish itself. As Kuwait already has a skilled craft-based workforce this should be something that is already implementable, all it will require is a set of dedicated designers (be these designers of products, furniture, buildings or cities) and a sustained doze of faith and perseverance. The SAM Street proposal could be the first physical manifestation of such aspirations.

If needed, please 'click' on the images to enlarge them...


Existing

A brief analysis of some of the existing features and conditions which apply to SAM Street.


Features/ Elements...


The landmark Al-Salam Complex at the western end of SAM St., currently being demolished...

A stretch of three storey office buildings, are also in the process of being demolished...

The street has an extended row of, seemingly self-sustaining, shade providing (at least three decades old) trees, stretching all along its commercial fronts...

SAM St. also retains a well proportioned set of mixed-use residential buildings, with retail premises on the ground level and residential units above...

There are a number of, somewhat unfortunate, developments being erected adjacent to the street...

Panorama view of the street's western stretch...

A cross-section taken of SAM Street's eastern, a bit narrower, end...

Plans...

The vehicular areas of SAM Street...

The sidewalks of SAM Street (note how much more pedestrianized areas there is in comparison to street area allocated for cars - a condition quite unique for Kuwait)...

Car parking on SAM Street (which, in turn, is surprisingly sparse compared to other comparable locales in Kuwait)...

The open areas along and adjacent to SAM Street...

The native (seemingly non-attended) trees along SAM Street...

The main access points to SAM Street...

The traffic routes and directions along SAM Street...

Proposed...


The aim is to pedestrianize the whole commercial/ retail stretch of SAM Street, something that lends itself quite naturally to this street, which, with its mirrored back-to-back u-turns, cannot be used as a vehicular thoroughfare (as can be observed in the image above this one)...

One of the proposals involves putting a university (a design school/ research institution?!) at one end of SAM St. as an anchor tenant. This is not too much of a stretch as there has already been proposals to provide a number of additional state universities to Kuwait, and it would be a dynamic way to breathe new life into this part of town.

Another appropriate (quasi) anchor tenant would be to provide dormitories and residential units at the other (eastern) end of the stretch. This would create a natural circulation for the area...

The stretch between the two nodes would be filled with more communal elements - various cultural (galleries, theatres, film screens...), dining (restaurants, coffee-shops...) and retail (with emphasis one more unique and individual 'speciality' stores)...

As a collective, the institutes of higher learning and in combination with the communal open and public areas, the neighbourhood would hopefully develop into a creative hub for the city...

Eventually it would be great to (gradually) expand the pedestrianized areas and link them to some of the other key nodes in Salmiya, such as the beach, Marina Mall (less than a 5 minute walk away) and the remains of the western end of Salem Al Mubarak Street (by Al Fanar and Sultan Center), as well as (as noted by re:kuwait) the future Salmiya Park...