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Shaikha Dwa bint Khalid Al Khalifa, who recently clinched second place in the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week’s (ADSW) Global Digital Art Competition, hopes her artistic achievement and future works will continue to help raise awareness on pressing global issues.
The competition, held at the Connect Conference Centre, Expo City in Dubai, under the theme ‘United on Climate Action at COP28’, aimed to harness the power of visual creativity to raise awareness about climate change and sustainable solutions…which Shaikha Dwa beautifully did with her digital creation called Venice is not alone.
“I am thrilled that my work has been awarded as one of the top three submissions in the prestigious competition,” said Shaikha Dwa, who is a member of the National Council for Arts. “I chose to focus on the issue of rising sea levels in coastal cities. While there has been significant attention given to the impact on islands, I firmly believe that the threat faced by coastal cities cannot be ignored. By highlighting this aspect, I aimed to broaden the conversation and draw attention to the urgent need for action.”
There were more than 150 entries from around the world encompassing digital canvas drawings and graphics, all of which had to align with at least one of COP28’s vital climate action themes such as ‘Nature, Land Use, and Oceans’, ‘Youth, Education, and Skills/ Gender Equality’, ‘Cities, Regions, and Urbanisation/Transport’ and more.
The entries were judged on their artistic originality, interpretation of the theme and creative application of digital tools and methods by an esteemed judging panel comprising some of the most influential creative minds in the region.
Shaikha Dwa’s creativity has been making headlines over the years. In May, she produced a 12-minute Bahraini documentary called Goalden Girls which won the ‘Best Women Film’ and the ‘Best Arabic Film’ categories in the Cannes World Film Festival this year. It shined a light on the kingdom’s footballing females.
Shaikha Dwa herself is a former international women’s football player for the Bahrain team and had 39 international appearances during her sporting career. She is also one of the founding members of the national women’s team and a member of the Bahrain Women’s Football Committee.
She also recently published a children’s book called Loha in a Jam with her dear friends Shaikha Aseel bint Khalifa Al Khalifa, Muna Rabieh and Noor Al Shalabi to captivate youngsters with the island’s culture.
In the meantime, she plans to continue her artwork.
“It serves as a methods of sending messages across and developing my practice and seeing where it takes me. I’m also completing my PhD next year,” said the current Youth Team Manager.
“I’m using art as a message to achieve results in findings, so again incorporating my passion in an academic sense. I would also like to add that the art scene in Bahrain has been established for years and years. It’s the expertise, advice and mentoring that I received from established artists that allowed me to reach where I am today.
“My message for everyone is to believe in themselves, not to take rejection as an evaluation of their artwork and to continue developing and practicing it.”
For details, follow @dee_khalid8 on Instagram.
