Doha: As part of Qatar Creates, the year-round national cultural movement that curates, promotes, and celebrates the diversity of cultural activities in Qatar, and in celebration of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Qatar Museums has announced the opening of Fereej Al Najada, Qatar’s newest Fereej (village) for the creative industry with Back to the Future: Pop-up Studios.
Starting yesterday until January 23, 2023, Fereej Al Najada will host Qatar-based creatives in seven heritage houses, during which time they have the opportunity to promote their artistic expression to the World Cup audience through open studios, art exhibitions, digital installations, and retail stores. The activation, curated by Fereej Al Najada’s director Fahad Al Obaidly, aims to spark dialogue on Qatar’s creative history, displaying what the Qatari creative medium was, what it is, and what it may become.
“We worked hard to respect the original architecture and character of Fereej Al Najada. Our main goal was to honour the communities that lived and grew between those walls during the last century, bringing the village back to life for Qatar’s community to connect with the past,” Al Obaidly said.
Abdullatif Al Jasmi, the Director of Cultural Heritage Protection led Qatar Museum’s effort to revive the area and to preserve it for future generations. Al Jasmi said: “Al Najada was once a living, thriving neighbourhood full of memories, incidents, and events, but that is a story that has come to end.”
