The British Museum's exhibition A History of the World in 100 Objects at Manarat Al Saadiyat on Saadiyat Island will be brought to life on June 18 with performances and workshops.
The Artscape event will feature art, music, crafts and even chocolate-making demonstrations, offering a peek into the history and cultural significance of the exhibition.
One of the most interesting segments of Artscape is Gatotka Gandrung, a performance of Wayang Kulit or shadow puppetry by an Indonesian puppetry troupe. It complements Bima, a 200-year-old shadow puppet that is a prominent part of the 100 Objects exhibition and based on a character from the Hindu epic Mahabharata.
Also in the line-up is a performance by the Brazilian street artist Tarsila Schubert; a music and video workshop titled Magic Mirror led by the guqin player Wu Na and the contemporary artist Feng Mengbo on drums; The History of Chocolate in Mexico will explore the relationship between humans and cacao; and When Art Meets Football will feature a freestyle footballer and a street artist – inspired by a counterfeit Didier Drogba football shirt in the exhibition (Drogba is an Ivory Coast footballer who played for Chelsea FC).
Salama Al Shamsi, the project manager at Zayed National Museum, says 100 Objects offers "a flavour of the eagerly anticipated Zayed National Museum" and that Artscape is an essential component: "It brings to life the exhibition so that the public can engage and directly experience some of the key themes and concepts that make this ground-breaking exhibition so unique."
• Artscape is on June 18 at Manarat Al Saadiyat from 6pm to 9pm. Entry is free. For more information, visit www.saadiyatculturaldistrict.ae
aseaman@thenational.ae
