Doha, November 09 (QNA) - Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Qatar Museums(QM), HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani on Monday opened "Bu'ed Nadhar", an exhibition bringing together 32 works by 16 artists and designers developed through five of Liwan's residency and collaborative programmes. Presented as part of Design Doha 2026, the exhibition offers a collective view of the ideas, materials and creative practices that have emerged from Liwan's residency programmes to date.

"Bu'ed Nadhar" is on view at Liwan Design Studios and Labs from 5 November 2026 to 31 January 2027.

Meaning Beyond Immediate Vision, "Bu'ed Nadhar" considers design through the relationship between the past, present and future. The title reflects the idea that design extends beyond form and function, drawing on cultural memory, inherited knowledge and material practices while remaining open to experimentation, reinterpretation and new approaches to making.

Through its residency programmes, Liwan has brought artists and designers into direct exchange with craftspeople, mentors, workshops, suppliers, production facilities and natural landscapes in Qatar and abroad. "Bu'ed Nadhar" brings the outcomes of these exchanges together, showing how sustained research, collaboration and hands-on production can lead to new design practices and forms.

The exhibition also highlights Qatar as a site of design production, where local materials, industries, workshops and landscapes provide the foundations for experimentation and making. Across the exhibition, clay, palm leaves, wood, fibres, sand, glass, metal and upholstery are transformed into furniture, vessels, installations and sculptural works that reinterpret cultural knowledge through contemporary design.

Director of Liwan Design Studios and Labs and Curator of "Bu'ed Nadhar", Aisha Nasser Al Sowaidi said: "The exhibition brings together the outcomes of several of Liwan's residency programmes and gives us the opportunity to see how these different exchanges and collaborations have developed over time. Our residencies give artists and designers the space to research, experiment and work directly with craftspeople, materials and production networks. The exhibition reflects how these experiences can lead to new work while remaining connected to the knowledge, traditions and environments that shape design in this region."

Each residency takes a different approach to research, mentorship, material exploration and production.

For the Ideas FROMM. Industry Residency, Liwan members Asma Shaklame, Abdulla Al Obaidly and Noora Al Henzab were selected to work under the mentorship of FROMM.Lab. In collaboration with local suppliers and production facilities across Doha's Industrial Area, they explored wood, upholstery, glass and metal through the lens of Qatar's industrial and urban landscape, demonstrating how local materials and production processes can inspire new design ideas.

Shaping and Crafting the Future Residency, developed by Liwan with Campus MaNa in Burgundy, France, presents work by Aia Zaina, Haya Abu Al Saad, Reema Abu Hassan and Bashair Al Khulaifi. The projects combine material experimentation, environmental responsibility and creative reuse to propose more responsible approaches to design.

The Liwan Craft Residency, Oasis: Our Design Ecosystem, led and curated by Asma Derouiche, brought designers together with artisans, workshops and industry partners to reinterpret culturally significant objects through contemporary materials and production methods.

Developed within the residency under the mentorship of Cristian Mohaded, Hayakum reimagines the traditional date container through Qatar's culture of hospitality and gathering.

Further highlights include Noora Al Melhim's Athar, a work composed of hand-formed ceramic tiles that reinterprets the traditional Gulf fire pit as a place of memory and gathering. Jassim Al Nasrallah's Bar-Bahr uses natural materials and processes inspired by erosion and heat to explore the relationship between Arabic calligraphy and Qatar's marine and desert environments.

Together, the works demonstrate how Liwan's residency programmes have developed into a platform for research, experimentation and collaborative production. Across different materials and approaches, they show how craft can act as a living archive, carrying knowledge across generations while remaining open to reinvention.

"Bu'ed Nadhar" also reflects Liwan's wider role in supporting artists and designers from research and mentorship through to production and exhibition, while contributing to Qatar's growing design ecosystem. (QNA)