Sidra Sohail with her creation during the opening of the ‘Modern Prayer Rug’ exhibition at the Company House, part of Msheireb Museums in Msheireb Downtown, Doha. Pic: Abdul Basit / The Peninsula
Six Islamic prayer rugs made with traditional and innovative materials while honouring the richness and the values of Islamic culture and heritage are on display at Company House, part of Msheireb Museums in Msheireb Downtown Doha.
The exhibits represent the finalists of a Modern Prayer Rug Design Competition hosted by the Virginia Commonwealth University, School of the Arts in Qatar (VCUarts Qatar).
‘Modern Prayer Rug’ exhibition officially opened on Thursday and will be open to the public until November 14.
The exhibition was inspired by the creative vision of H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. The ‘Modern Prayer Rugs’ exhibit represents a culmination of the design journey of six finalists who entered the VCUarts Qatar Materials Library Modern Prayer Design Competition. Some of them competed individually and others in groups.
The winners of the competition was announced by Dr Akel I Kahera, VCUarts Qatar Dean, during a reception held in the presence of many art enthusiastic. Sidra Sohail was selected as the winner for her creation, while Ahmed Al Nowafal and Massa Jamili secured the second place, May Makia won the third place.
Sidra, who has reverted to Islam said that she created the prayer rug, keeping in mind the difficulties she faced in learning the correct way of offering prayers. “I decided to design a rug for converts and reverts to be able to get the basic praying instructions while they pray,” said Sidra.
Speaking about the winning moment Sidra, a freshman at the VCUarts Qatar said, “I’m really excited and cannot wait to see this become a product .”
She has designed the prayer rug with a minimal compactable wooden box that carries the rug bound but laser cut kerfing, commonly known as living hinges. Kerfing allows flexibility. Natural walnut veneer is double sided heat pressed to give it thickness. When folded, the wood turns into a box for the rug and screen to be kept safe. When unfolded, the box turns into a stand for the screen that displays instructions and verses for the readers. The rug is made out of natural suede for its luxurious feel. Attached is wool to give users comfort while kneeling.
While, Aaqifa Altaf, Maryam Al Semaitt and Nawar Al Mutlaq and the group of Neihan Yaqoob, Sultana Jesmine, and Hossain Mohammad Yasin Arafat were the other finalists.
The competition challenged students from across Qatar to submit concept designs that reimagined the Islamic prayer rug using traditional or unconventional materials, while honoring the richness and the values of Islamic culture and heritage. The six finalists, selected on the overall strength of their concepts, had the opportunity to work with the professional staff and collections of the VCUarts Qatar Materials Library to produce the six rug prototypes on exhibit.
