See Photos of Qatar’s Massive Open-Air Museum with Works by Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons & Richard Serra

A Yayoi Kusama pumpkin, Rashid Johnson mosaic, and a monumental Jeff Koons sculpture—in the likeness of an endangered marine mammal—are among the 40 new and commissioned public artworks to be installed throughout Doha in Qatar, the state body Qatar Museums announced today.

Damien Hirst, The Miraculous Journey, 2013.

PHOTO COPYRIGHT IWAN BAAN. COURTESY OF QATAR MUSEUMS

The mass public art program marks an ambitious fall season for the Gulf nation, with much-anticipated events including the FIFA World Cup football tournament and the inauguration of several new museums.

Some sculptures have already been installed, such as Untitled (Trench, Shafts, Pit, Tunnel and Chamber), 1978, by Bruce Nauman, in Msheireb Downtown Doha, Tom Claassen’s Falcon (2021) outside the Hamad International Airport, and Two Orchids (2015) by Isa Genzken near the National Theater, in what the government is calling its new “outdoor museum.”

The full artist list is a wide range of living and dead international, regional, and Qatari artists. The newly installed works include Maqam I, Maqam II, Maqam III by Lebanese artist Simone Fattal, three conical granite sculptures reminiscent of blue dunes, a nearly 100-foot-long banner by American conceptual artist Lawrence Weiner at Stadium 974, and a light installation by Iraqi artist Adel Abidin projected on the facade of Mathaf.

The public art program is overseen by Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the chairperson of Qatar Museums. Once completed, it will rival the most prominent sculpture initiative in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia’s open-air sculpture museum on Corniche in Jeddah, which holds works by Hans Arp, Alexander Calder, and Maha Malluh.

See a selection of the new public artworks in Doha here.

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Wax museum ‘Madame Tussauds’ opens to public in Noida

Merlin Entertainments, the leading visitor attraction operators, announced its re-entry into the Indian market, with Madame Tussauds India in an all-new avatar at a new location. The Madame Tussauds India attraction opens the gates to fanfare today at DLF Mall of India – Noida.

The venue is alight with some of the brand-new attractions along with the most interactive experiential displays that will offer a unique experience to the visitors. The attraction is specially designed to offer an exceptional experience to visitors, with the opportunity to interact with their favourite celebrities and role models.

India, recognised for its rich cultural past, sparkling Bollywood star-studded actors and entertainment sector diversity, is an iconic destination to host the world renowned attraction brand. The new wax attraction by Madame Tussauds will feature close to 50 figures from various genres, including history, sports, music, film, and television.

Each wax figure is crafted by over 20 international artists working concurrently for 3-6 months to create the magic. The attraction’s audiences have long held a special place in their hearts for Madame Tussauds and visitors are promised an unforgettable star-studded experience.

Spread over 16,000 Sq.ft and showcasing close to 50 wax figures, the attraction will open to the public from today, 19th July 2022.

Visitors will have the opportunity to meet international and domestic current and late famous figures, such as the honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, India’s greatest freedom fighters such as Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Bhagat Singh, Subhas Chanda Bose, Cricketing legends like Sachin Tendulkar, Kapil Dev and Virat Kohli, Bollywood celebrities like Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, Katrina Kaif and Madhubala; singing legends Asha Bhosle and Sonu Nigam, and many more.

For those with younger children, they will also have the chance to meet their favourite cartoon characters including Motu- Patlu.

Speaking on the opening Anshul Jain, General Manager and Director Merlin Entertainments India Pvt Ltd, said, “We are overjoyed to announce that world’s most famous wax attraction, Madame Tussauds, is finally opening its doors in India, at the new and exciting location of the DLF Mall of India Noida. The wax attraction will provide the Indian audience with an immersive and thrilling glimpse into the glamorous world of well-known celebrities and personalities.

“I truly foresee an exhilarating presence of fans not only from Noida & Delhi NCR, but from all over the country. We have emphasised on Indian superstars, knowing that both residents and visitors will enjoy meeting these icons who have made a difference in their lives in many ways. Madame Tussauds is set to serve each one of our visitors with a magical and unique visit they’ll remember for years to come,” Jain said.

Rob Smith, Divisional Director, Midway Asia Pacific, Merlin Entertainments Group, said, “We are excited as we get ready to capture all the smiles and excitement as fans meet their favourite Indian and International superstars. It will be an amazing experience to welcome people to their most loved wax attraction. Moreover, we are delighted to give our Indian fans, their most loved attraction in a new avatar and at a new location in DLF, Mall of India.”

Pushpa Bector, Executive Director, DLF Retail, said, “The re-opening of Madame Tussauds is one of the most anticipated launches in the country and we are glad to be their partner of choice. Entertainment continues to be one of the key attractions at DLF Mall of India and with this new addition, we are curating a whole new level of unique experiences for our patrons across age groups. DLF Mall of India is a hub for some of the most prominent retail brands in India and we look forward to continuing to provide a rejuvenated mix of the latest offerings to our customers.”

Adding to this, Manish Mehrotra, SVP & Head of Mall Operations, DLF Shopping Malls, said, “DLF Mall of India, has been at the forefront at enhancing experiential value for its patrons. A hub to a vast catalogue of retail brands, the mall has grown with the ever-evolving tastes of its customers. We are thrilled to have partnered with Madame Tussauds and aim to further expand the entertainment quotient at the mall. Our visitors will now have the opportunity to get up close and personal with their favourite known personalities and experience a thrill like never before. We hope to continue catering to our patrons in unique ways and provide new, exciting formats which encourage them to come back to our mall.”

Attraction tickets are will be available via walk-in at the counter of Madame Tussauds India at 4th floor, DLF Mall of India, from the opening day. Tickets are available at Rs 960 for adults and Rs 760 for children, with the added benefit of flexibility in enabling visitors to visit at any time and for any duration for the day the ticket is booked for.

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M.O.C Preserves & Promotes Indian Art, Literature & Culture through various autonomous organizations

Mumbai [India], July 25: Ministry of Culture through its autonomous organizations viz. Sangeet Natak Akademi, Sahitya Akademi, National School of Drama, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, Lalit Kala Akademi, Kalakshetra Foundation, Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts preserves and promotes Indian Art, Literature and Culture.

Swati Bhat

The Sangeet Natak Akademi (SNA) organizes Festivals all over the country. The academy gives grants-in-aid for research, documentation, and publishing in the performing arts. Under guru-sishya parampara, SNA offers financial support to cultural institutions across the country. The Akademi’s archives carefully preserve recordings of the eminent and upcoming artists.

Sahitya Akademi (SA) is the National Academy of Letters, working for the promotion and preservation of Indian literature in 24 languages recognized by it, and also the oral and tribal literature of India. By promoting varied literature of the country, Sahitya Academy strives to unite diverse cultural, linguistic and literary communities and traditions of India. For this purpose, Sahitya Academy annually organizes more than 500 literary programmes, publishes around 500 literary books and organizes/participates in nearly 150-200 book fairs and exhibitions. During the last five years, the Sahitya Academy has been intensely promoting Indian literature in all 24 languages through conferment of Awards (96 per annum), programmes ( about 500 per annum), publications (about 500 per annum) and by participating in the book fairs and exhibitions across the country.

National School of Drama (NSD) had conducted various Theatre activities during last 5 years, i.e. Rashtriya Poorvottar Samaroh, Bharat Rang Mahotsav, Poorvottar Natya Samaroh, Poorvottar Rashtriya Samaroh, Classical Theatre Festival, National Tribal Festival of Theatre, Music & Art and organized 3 days theatre festival under “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav” on the occasion of 75th Anniversary of Independence.

Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (C.C.R.T.) organizes in service Orientation Courses and Thematic Workshops for Government and Government aided school teachers and teacher educators throughout the year, for preservation and promotion of Indian art, literature and culture at the national level. Lalit Kala Academy (L.K.A.) is working for the development of visual arts in India. In the last five years, the Kalakshetra Foundation conducted various Arts festivals such as Kathakali, Annual Art Festival, Trinity Festivals, Remembering Rukamani Devi Festival, Kalasibiram, Kala Sambrakshana, Dhrupad Festival. Ministry of Culture is also implementing Kala Sanskriti Vikas Yojana (K.S.V.Y.) scheme through which cultural organizations are given financial assistance for the promotion of art and culture.

For preserving ancient, medieval literature of Indian languages Sahitya Akademi an autonomous organization under the aegis of Ministry of Culture had instituted Bhasha Samman in 1996 to be given to writers, scholars , editors, collectors, performers and translators for promoting unrecognized languages of India. So far the Akademi has presented 102 Bhasha Sammans in Classical and Medieval Literature as well as in the unrecognized languages of India. The Sahitya Academy has a prestigious series – Makers of Indian Literature for Indian writers who have made a significant contribution to the development of literature in the Indian Languages.

Ministry of Culture gives monthly grant to its autonomous organizations under Grant-in-Aid for the purpose. The Ministry of Culture implements Kala Sanskriti Vikas Yojana (K.S.V.Y.) scheme which consists of a number of sub-schemes like Repertory Grant, Financial Assistance to Cultural organizations with National Presence, Financial Assistance for the Preservation & Development of Cultural Heritage of the Himalayas, Financial Assistance for the Preservation & Development of Buddhist/Tibetan Organization and financial assistance for veteran artists to provide financial assistance to cultural organizations/NGOs/individuals.

This information was given by Minister of Culture and Tourism and Development of North Eastern Region Shri G. Kishan Reddy in Lok Sabha today.

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